The Dambai township is in mourning following the tragic deaths of two prominent figures, a revered Traditional Chief and a former Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), including several others, reportedly succumbing to complications related to typhoid fever.
The Oti Regional Minister, John Kwadwo Gyapong who made the revelation in an interview on Joy FM’s Midday News yesterday, August 26, said, there is need for urgent improvements to water and sanitation infrastructure in the township.
He described the situation as “bad” and “scary,” warning that the disease is spreading rapidly, destroying homes and killing the community members.
He said the waterborne bacterial infection poses a major public health challenge across parts of the region.
“Just to even mention what happened to us yesterday, (Monday, August 25), one of our chiefs, Asafoatse of Dambai Traditional Council, we lost him because of typhoid. So many people have lost their lives. As for politicians, most of them even died. The former Chief Executive of Dambai died out of typhoid.
“The situation is so bad. As for typhoid in the Oti Region, and especially in Dambai, the capital, it is very, very bad. Unfortunately for us, we don’t have a hospital in Dambai, and that is the major issue. And because of the Oti River, the sanitation in the area looks so bad” he narrated.
He added, “We don’t know what it is, whether it is Dambai that is producing the typhoid or whatever, but it is a serious issue, a very, very serious issue. I myself had never suffered from typhoid, but since I became minister and came to Dambai, I have been treated three times already for typhoid.”
This comes after 10,233 cases of typhoid fever in the first and second quarters of 2025 was confirmed by the Regional Health Directorate.
Health officials attribute the increase to inadequate sanitation facilities, poor waste management, and limited access to clean drinking water conditions that create a fertile environment for the spread of the disease.
The situation has made the Oti Regional Coordinating Council, to collaborate with environmental health officers, to inaugurate a sanitation task force to tackle the root causes of the outbreak.
The task force is expected to implement sanitation programs such as the construction of waste disposal systems, the provision of safe water sources, and intensified public education.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Krachi West and Dean of MMDCEs in the Oti Region, Prosper Addo, expressed concern about the impact of the outbreak on vulnerable groups.
He pledged that municipal and district assemblies will roll out initiatives to curb the spread, while stressing the need for residents’ active participation.
“We can only win this fight if communities themselves adopt good sanitation and hygiene practices,” Addo urged.
Typhoid fever, caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi, is strongly linked to poor sanitation and unsafe water sources. Regional Environmental Health Officer, Cynthia Sekyere, described the rising number of cases as worrying, noting that infections have surged compared to previous years.
