Na Abdulai Adam, chief of Dalimbila, a farming community within the Tamale Metropolis, has appealed for the provision of social amenities and educational infrastructure in his area. According to him, school children in the community lacked furniture and teachers while water was a scarce commodity. "Women and children have to walk for about four kilometers before getting water," he said. Na Adam said this on Tuesday when Alhaji Abdulai Haruna Friday, Metropolitan Chief Executive of the Tamale Metropolis, visited rural communities to assess their needs. The communities he visited included Lahagu, Difa, Dalimbilla, Duunying, Jerigu, Cheko and Parishe located in the Lahagu Electoral area and Gukpegtua, Kootingli, Bagliga and Bagliga-Dakpemyili in the Kootingli Electoral area. The visits were also meant to afford the Mayor and the new Metropolitan Coordinating Director, Mr John Atogiba, the opportunity to interact with chiefs, opinion leaders and residents to share with them the development agenda of the assembly. Na Adam commended the MCE for the initiative to interact with residents and chiefs and stressed the importance of meeting community needs so that the electorate would continue to have trust in the government. He appealed to government to put measures in place to ensure that every community in the country was provided with a well equipped six-classroom block as means of improving education. Some of the communities also appealed for an extension of electricity to their areas to enhance economic activities. Alhaji Friday assured the people of government's preparedness and determination to alleviate poverty in the country and that provision of potable water and educational infrastructure was high on the agenda of the government. He appealed to NGOs based in Tamale to consider including communities outside their operational areas so that poverty and other community needs in the region would be addressed. Alhaji Friday appealed to the people to remain united and to continue to respect their chiefs. He added that the Metropolitan Assembly would collaborate with the Member of Parliament for the area, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, to meet the needs of the communities and appealed to them be patient since the government would not abandon them. Source: GNA