Wa, Ghana

Wa
Town

View of a high street in Wa

Wa Municipal logo
Wa

Location of Wa in Upper West Region

Coordinates: 10°4′N 2°30′W / 10.067°N 2.500°W / 10.067; -2.500
Country Ghana
Region Upper West Region
District Wa Municipal District
Elevation 305 m (1,001 ft)
Population (2012)
 • Total 102,446[1]
Time zone GMT
 • Summer (DST) GMT (UTC)
Area code(s) 039

Wa is a town and is the capital of Wa Municipal District and the Upper West Region of north Ghana. Wa has a 2012 settlement population of 102,446.[1] Features of the town include several mosques, the Wa-Na Palace, a museum and a nearby hippopotamus sanctuary. The geography of Wa is notable for the dramatic monadnock Ombo Mountain which is located around Kaleo and visible from much of the Wa town. Other notable towns around Wa wa region include Naaha and Ga

The town serves as a transportation hub for the Upper West region, with major roads leading north to Hamile, and northeast to Tumu and the Upper East Region. There is also a small airport, the Wa Airport.[2]

History

Wa has been inhabited for several hundred years, by traders who settled in Wa to participate in the trans-Saharan trade. Wa also holds the mortal remains of Babatu, a notorious raider well known for his raids in Upper West region during the late and early 19th century.

Environment and weather

Wa is in the southern part of the Sahel, the semi-arid area south of the Sahara. Average annual rainfall is around 879 millimetres (34.6 in), almost all of which occurs between May and October. Following the May–October rainly season is a cool dry period called the Harmattan when a steady, often dusty, north wind blows from the Sahara. The hottest period of the year is in February and March when daytime temperatures often reach 40 °C (103 °F).

Climate data for Wa
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 38.9
(102)		 40.0
(104)		 41.7
(107.1)		 41.7
(107.1)		 39.4
(102.9)		 37.2
(99)		 33.9
(93)		 34.1
(93.4)		 34.4
(93.9)		 36.7
(98.1)		 38.9
(102)		 38.0
(100.4)		 41.7
(107.1)
Average high °C (°F) 34.4
(93.9)		 35.9
(96.6)		 36.1
(97)		 34.8
(94.6)		 32.8
(91)		 30.5
(86.9)		 29.1
(84.4)		 28.8
(83.8)		 29.5
(85.1)		 32.4
(90.3)		 34.5
(94.1)		 33.8
(92.8)		 32.7
(90.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) 26.9
(80.4)		 29.1
(84.4)		 30.0
(86)		 29.1
(84.4)		 27.8
(82)		 26.1
(79)		 25.0
(77)		 24.5
(76.1)		 24.7
(76.5)		 26.5
(79.7)		 27.5
(81.5)		 26.7
(80.1)		 27.0
(80.6)
Average low °C (°F) 19.4
(66.9)		 21.7
(71.1)		 23.7
(74.7)		 24.0
(75.2)		 23.1
(73.6)		 22.0
(71.6)		 21.6
(70.9)		 21.3
(70.3)		 21.2
(70.2)		 21.6
(70.9)		 21.2
(70.2)		 19.4
(66.9)		 21.7
(71.1)
Record low °C (°F) 12.8
(55)		 15.6
(60.1)		 18.9
(66)		 18.9
(66)		 18.9
(66)		 19.6
(67.3)		 18.9
(66)		 18.3
(64.9)		 18.9
(66)		 18.9
(66)		 17.2
(63)		 12.2
(54)		 12.2
(54)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 3
(0.12)		 14
(0.55)		 41
(1.61)		 94
(3.7)		 131
(5.16)		 139
(5.47)		 149
(5.87)		 192
(7.56)		 215
(8.46)		 81
(3.19)		 17
(0.67)		 6
(0.24)		 1,082
(42.6)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.3 mm) 1 2 4 8 10 12 13 16 18 7 2 1 92
Average relative humidity (%) (at 15:00) 16 18 28 44 55 63 66 69 68 51 33 19 44
Mean monthly sunshine hours 285.2 265.6 266.6 225.0 266.6 228.0 207.7 176.7 189.0 285.2 279.0 297.6 2,972.2
Mean daily sunshine hours 9.2 9.4 8.6 7.5 8.6 7.6 6.7 5.7 6.3 9.2 9.3 9.6 8.1
Source: Deutscher Wetterdienst[3]

Economy and agriculture

Despite its urban status, Wa is in many ways still an agricultural community, and the majority of the Wa population make a good portion of their living in small scale farming. The main crops are corn, millet, yams, okra and groundnuts. Upland rice is also farmed in a few areas of Wa. The major fruit crop is the mango. Shea nuts are collected from wild trees, for food or refinement into oils and cosmetics.

Education

The Town of Wa pays host to a few renowned educational institutions. The biggest Senior High School in the Upper West Region, Wa Senior High School (formerly, WASSEC), is in this town. WASSEC had some tumultuous times in the past due to mis-management and indiscipline which decreased the school's standards. However, the school has recently been recording major improvements in students' general discipline and performance in the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination.[4] The school was made a model school, which has boosted its infrastructural capacity thereby making it an attractive destination for students and teachers. Wa also has St. Francis Xavier Junior Seminary. Built in the 1960s, Xavier has produced a plethora of successful young men for the service of the country and the world. St Francis Xavier Junior Seminary, arguably the best secondary school in the country, has scored 100% on the SSSCE for a very long time. Wa also hosts the campus where majority of students of University for Development Studies (UDS) are based with three faculties,[5] namely:

  1. Integrated Development Studies
  2. Planning and Land Management
  3. Education, Law and Business Studies

Culture

The Damba Festival

The Damba festival was the main traditional event of Wa. It was typically held in late September to correspond with a harvest in Wa. The highlight of the year was a ceremony in which the Wa-na stepped over a small cow lying on the ground. According to traditional belief, if any part of the Wa-na or the Wa-na clothing touched the cow, the Wa-na would probably die within the year. If on the other hand, the Wa-na stepped over the cow successfully, the Wa-na was guaranteed a successful coming year.

Food and cuisine

The staple food of Wa is known as sao or T-Zed in English. This is an abbreviation meaning 'very hot'. It is a thick porridge of corn flour eaten like fufu – by tearing off a chunk and dipping into a soup, usually of okra.

References

  1. 1 2 "World Gazetteer online". World-gazetteer.com.
  2. ↑ Touring Ghana – Upper West Region. touringghana.com.
  3. ↑ "Klimatafel von Wa / Ghana" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
  4. ↑ "Secondary Education in Wa". modernghana.com. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
  5. ↑ "Wa Campus". uds.edu.gh. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wa (Ghana).

Coordinates: 10°04′N 02°30′W / 10.067°N 2.500°W / 10.067; -2.500

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