Koforidua, also popularly known as K-dua or Kofcity, is a city and the capital of Eastern Region in southern

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. Koforidua was founded in 1875 by migrants from Ashanti. It is also called New Juaben. The city has a

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building *Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fina ...

city proper population of 183,727 people as of 2010, Koforidua is an amalgamation of two Municipalities; New Juaben North and South. The city has a blend of colonial and modern architecture. Koforidua serves as a commercial centre for the Eastern region and

New-Juaben Municipal District New Juaben Municipal District is a former district that was located in Eastern Region, Ghana. Originally created as a municipal district assembly in 1988. However on 1 November 2017 (effective 15 March 2018), it was split out into two new municip ...

. The city is home to many businesses, with the exception of heavy duty industries. The city is home to Intravenous Infusions Ltd., one of the oldest pharmaceutical companies in Ghana and West Africa, a leading producer of injections and drips. The company is listed on the Ghana Stock exchange and was registered in 1969. The city is home to many Government Departments and Ministries at the Regional level. The recent construction of the four-lane highway road linking the Koforidua Technical University and Koforidua to

Oyoko Oyoko is a small town in the Sekyere Kumawu District of the Ashanti Region of Ghana. The town is in the Kumawu parliamentary constituency. Oyoko is near Effiduase, about northeast of Kumasi, the regional capital. Notable places There are two ...

brings commerce to the city. The highway also serves as a valid alternative route to reach

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

Etymology

Oral tradition has it that, Koforidua owes its name to an

Akan Akan may refer to: People and languages *Akan people, an ethnic group in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire *Akan language, a language spoken by the Akan people *Kwa languages, a language group which includes Akan *Central Tano languages, a language group w ...

man, Kofi Ofori, who had built his hut under a huge mahogany tree. This tree provided shelter for weary farmers who were returning from their farms after a hard day's work. Over time, it became common for the farmers to say that they were going to rest under Kofi Ofori's tree. In

language, Twi, the word for tree is "dua". An amalgamation of Kofi Ofori's name and tree, therefore, becomes "Koforidua." Koforidua today is a multi-ethnic city with people from various ethnic groups in Ghana calling the city their home.

History

Koforidua was founded in 1875 by

migrants from

Asanteman The Asante Empire (Asante Twi: ), today commonly called the Ashanti Empire, was an Akan state that lasted between 1701 to 1901, in what is now modern-day Ghana. It expanded from the Ashanti Region to include most of Ghana as well as parts of I ...

. The completion of the Kumasi railway in 1923 saw Koforidua become an important road and rail junction. Koforidua is one of the country's oldest

cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...

-producing centres. It is also noted today for its weekly Thursday bead market, which draws bead buyers and sellers from all over the Eastern region.

Legend about Koforidua

Legend has it that, the Obuotabiri mountain found in New Juabeng, was the home of the gods and protected the people. It was believed to be inhabited by

dwarf Dwarf or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a being from Germanic mythology and folklore * Dwarf, a person or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a humanoid ...

s and thus was considered the soul of the New Juabeng traditional area. All the townsfolk have great reverence for the mountain: OBUOTABIRI - the rock of Tabiri.

Geography

The New Juaben Municipality falls within the Eastern Region of South Ghana. The municipality covers an estimated area of 110 square kilometres, constituting 0.57% of the total land area of the Eastern Region. The municipality has 48 electoral areas. The New-Juaben municipality shares boundaries with East-Akim Municipality to the northeast, Akwapim North District to the east and south, and Suhum-Kraboa-Coaltar District to the west. The city of Koforidua (New Juabeng) is made up of several neighbourhoods and settlements, including Effiduase, Asokore, Oyoko, Jumapo, Suhyen, Dansuagya, Betom, and Srodae. Koforidua is two hours by road from

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

Climate

Koforidua, owing to its location in the heart of the

Dahomey Gap In West Africa, the Dahomey Gap refers to the portion of the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic that extends all the way to the coast in Benin, Togo, and Ghana, thus separating the forest zone that covers much of the south of the region into two separat ...

, has a

hot semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

''BSh''). The weather is hot and humid year-round, but significant rainfall is usually only seen between April and June, although in wetter years in September and October also will see substantial falls.

Demographics

Presently the city's population is 127,334 people and is dominated by Akans. The 'Akwantukese' (The Big Journey Festival) is celebrated yearly to mark the movement of the inhabitants of Koforidua's ancestors from '

' to their present location of Koforidua.

Economy

Industries

The city is home to one of Ghana's oldest pharmaceutical Manufacturing companies i.e
Intravenous infusion Ltd
which manufactures drips and injections for the West African Market. Other Industrial activities of Koforidua include textiles,

crafts A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...

, soap,

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tr ...

and

joinery Joinery is a part of woodworking that involves joining pieces of wood, engineered lumber, or synthetic substitutes (such as laminate), to produce more complex items. Some woodworking joints employ mechanical fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, ...

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...

and

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

s, and the production of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

Financial Services

Koforidua is also home to many financial services companies ranging from Universal Banks, Micro-finance, Rural Banks and Savings and Loans Companies to Insurance Companies.

Agriculture

The city currently depends mainly on Government Administration, Retailing, hospitality, commercial and Education services. With inhabitants in the Cornubations (Outskirt surrounding communities) engaging in some form of subsistence farming.

Cocoa production

Koforidua produces cocoa. However, as

production has moved westward to the

Ashanti Region The Ashanti Region is located in southern part of Ghana and it is the third largest of 16 administrative regions, occupying a total land surface of or 10.2 percent of the total land area of Ghana. In terms of population, however, it is the mo ...

and Brong-Ahafo Region areas of virgin

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

, Koforidua has become increasingly dependent upon its commercial and business administrative functions. The city of Koforidua has only small-medium scale industries today.

Tourism

Koforidua's predominant tourism attractions include such natural features as Obuo Tabri Mountain, which is considered sacred. Nearby is

Akosombo Dam The Akosombo Dam, also known as the Volta Dam, is a hydroelectric dam on the Volta River in southeastern Ghana in the Akosombo gorge and part of the Volta River Authority. The construction of the dam flooded part of the Volta River Basin and led ...

, which holds

Lake Volta Lake Volta, the largest artificial reservoir in the world based on surface area, is contained behind the Akosombo Dam which generates a substantial amount of Ghana's electricity. It is completely within the country of Ghana and has a surface area ...

, the world's largest man-made lake.

Waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

s in the area, such as Akaa Falls and Boti Falls, and the

Umbrella Rock The Umbrella Rock is a rock found at the site of the Boti Falls in Yilo Krobo District Yilo Krobo Municipal District is one of the thirty-three districts in Eastern Region, Ghana. Originally created as an ordinary district assembly in 1988 w ...

attract tourists to the Eastern region. Even though such tourist sites are functioning all year round, tourists are at times encouraged to visit the place at certain times of the year, especially during the rainy seasons. At such times, the Boti Falls in particular is fully at its peak beauty and very interesting to visit.

Education

Koforidua remains a major hub of education in Ghana. It is home to many basic schools and a number of prominent senior high schools in the country. In 2012, one of its schools;

Pope John Senior High School and Minor Seminary Pope John Senior High School and Minor Seminary (formerly St John's Seminary and College, nicknamed POJOSS), is an all-boys boarding school, located at Effiduase, Koforidua, in the Eastern Region of Ghana. It was established in 1958 by Bishop ...

, was ranked 9th of the over 200 senior high schools in Ghana. The city also has a Technical University ( Koforidua Technical University) https://www.ktu.edu.gh and two private universities (

All Nations University College All Nations University was founded by Rev. Dr. Samuel Donkor in Ghana. It began with 37 students in October 2002 and has now expanded to over 2000 students. It became an accredited university college in Ghana in October 2002. The university is a ...

) and (Ghana telecom University College). and has campuses for other national Universities, the city also has a Teacher training college, Nursing and Midwifery College and other educational institutions. There are other High Schools in Koforidua. These include; Koforidua Secondary Technical Senior High School (K.S.T.S), Pope John Senior High and Junior Seminary (Pojoss), Oti Boateng Senior High School (Oboss), Pentecost Senior High School (Pensec), Ghana Senior High School (Ghanass, Koforidua), New Juabeng Senior High School (Njuasco), SDA Senior High School (Sedass), Oyoko Methodist Senior High School (Omess), amongst some other technical (Koforidua Technical Institute) and Private Vocational Schools. The Senior High schools train students from all over Ghana, preparing them for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). Passing WASSCE is essential to getting into Universities and other Tertiary Institutions in Ghana. It is also worth mentioning that schools like Ghanass, Pojoss, Sectech among others have been consistent in representing the municipality and the region as large in the famous annual National Science and Maths Quiz. Accommodation Koforidua has several hotels. Royal Plaza hotel, Capital View Hotel, Eastern Premier, Canadian Dreams Hotel, Oyinka Hotel, Bedtime Hotel, Partners May Hotel among others in town.

References

External links

Official site

Ghana-pedia website – Koforidua
{{Coord, 6, 05, 00, N, 0, 15, 00, W, display=title Regional capitals in Ghana Articles containing video clips