According to 2021 PHC provisional result, the population of Central Tongu District was 83,803 made up of 39,436 (47.00%) males and 44,367 (53.00%) females. The population growth rate of the District is higher than both national and regional figures of 2.5% each.

This rate can be attributed to the location of the District as stated earlier which indicates that there will be pressure on existing socio-economic services, facilities and resources in the District. The urban status of a community as per the 2021 PHC is based on the size of the population. Localities with population 5,000 or more are classified as urban and those lower than 5000 are rural communities.

The 2021 PHC result indicated that 11,286 and 72,517 of the district population are urban and rural respectively. On the basis of this definition it can be deduced that the population of the Central Tongu District is predominantly rural constituting 86.5% while 13.5 percent are in urban areas.

ENVIRONMENT

Natural Resource Endowment

Mineral Deposits

The District Assembly is endowed with natural resources such as granite, sand, clay, oyster, shells, feldspar, nepheline gneiss and rivers/streams. These resources are being exploited as demand for sand and gravel continues to increase. Sand winning is very important economic activity which poses as threat to the environment. Environmental issues are gradually becoming high as development and environment are inseparable.
Clay

The soils around Kpoviadzi, Adidome, and New Bakpa are rich in clay deposits. These are suitable for the manufacture of bricks and tiles, ceramic products and local pottery products. The Adidome Brick and Tile factory has started exploiting the clay resources around Adidome estimated at about 19 million metric tons and covering an area of 6 million m².

Oyster Shell

Deposits of Oyster shells used for paint, animal feed among others are found in several areas of the District, notably at Adidome, Bakpa, Tsetsekpo, Kpogede and Awadiwoekome with known deposits total about 250 thousand metric tons.

Granite Fine unexploited aggregates occur in heaps of hills near New Bakpa. These can support the construction industry. People have started small scale quarrying in the vicinity of Avakpedome, Mafi Kumase and Kpedzeglo.

Sand Winning

Contractors and individuals have subjected farm fields to very intensive sand winning activities in some parts of the District. This has resulted in environmental damage and loss in agriculture productivity. Sand wining in the District has negative effects on the environment, farming and health. Other direct effects include land degradation and destruction of roads by heavy trucks and air pollution.

Notwithstanding, sand winning has positive effects which are; a source of income for land owners, a source of revenue for the District Assembly, building materials for construction and a source of employment for the youth. In view of this maximum benefits should be obtained from the activity with ecological consideration in mind.

Implication for Development- Natural Resource Utilization

The unregulated sand winning taking place at various communities has led to land degradation and soil erosion. Sand winning activities have serious negative effects on farming with farmlands leased for the purpose, there is a greater chance of decrease in agriculture productivity, hence food security is a threat.

Clearance of vegetation causes disturbances of species thereby having an impact on the local wildlife. The operations of sand winners should be monitored for them to operate legally; this will create employment and boost the revenue generation of the Assembly.

Environmental Committee should be set up to streamline all activities on the environment coupled with the gazetting of the bye-laws and sensitisation for these activities to be conducted in a responsible manner.

AIR, WATER AND LAND POLLUTION

Fresh water is crucial to human society, not just for drinking but also for farming, washing and many other activities. The main source of drinking water is pipe borne followed by sachet water.

Water availability is expected to become increasingly scarce in the future, and this is partly due to climate change. Climate change is likely to lead to reduced rainfall in the coming years.

The effect of which is an intensification of the water cycle that may cause more extreme floods or droughts. This will further result in the drying of our water bodies which serve as sources of water for domestic use in some communities thereby resulting in the population facing water scarcity in the near future.

Implication for Development – Water Scarcity

For communities who rely on streams and rivers as their main sources of drinking water are prone to water-related diseases such as diarrhoea, typhoid fever, guinea worm and schistosomiasis.

The problem could be aggravated by a high population growth rate and a seemingly lack of capacity on the part of the responsible agency, the Ghana Water Company, to keep pace with the rate of demand. Women and children are affected the most during water scarcity as they will have to spend more time walking longer distances to get potable water.