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The Akatsi North District Chief Executive, Mr. James Gunu, has expressed concern over the increasing number of malaria cases in the area. According to him, the Ave-Dakpa Health Centre alone, registered 2,382 reported cases in the first quarter of 2014, which, he said, should be a major concern to all. Mr. Gunu continued that the alarming situation at the health centre has compelled the authorities to arrange with the St. Anthony�s Hospital at Dzodze for ambulance services to convey seriously affected patients to the hospital for intensive care, so as to avert any deaths. Addressing the 2nd Ordinary Meeting of the Assembly at the district capital, Ave-Dakpa, recently, the DCE stressed that the Assembly was putting in place measures to introduce regular clean up exercises in the district to keep the environment neat. To him, this was a way of protecting the people against malaria and other diseases, and called on the people to adopt hygienic practices that would not provide breeding grounds for mosquitoes. The DCE observed that sand mining, gravel and stone quarrying activities in the District were also contributing to the problem, and that apart from providing a breeding ground for the mosquitoes, farmlands, which the people also depend for survival, were also being destroyed. Mr. Gunu pointed out that the Assembly was much concerned with the health of the people, because for any meaningful development to be carried out in the area, it was important for the people to be healthy at all times, to enable them to work hard to contribute their quot a to the development process. Touching on agriculture, Mr. Gunu said the Assembly had supported irrigation development for farmers� groups at Ave-Afiadenyigba, with field preparation, supplied seed and compound fertilisers to cultivate 24 acres of maize. He noted that after harvesting, the maize would be shared among the individual farmers to enable them to create wealth for themselves, as well as make life more comfortable. Mr. Gunu observed that agriculture was the major business of the people in the area, with petty trading as an added value. He called on the people in the district to support the Assembly to initiate more development projects. He announced that the Akatsi North District Assembly had been enrolled on the Ghana Social Opportunity Project (GSOP) with an amount of GH�541, 042.51, which he said, would be used to initiate projects that would stem the rural-urban drift. He disclosed that the assembly was able to raise GH�566,150.18 as internally generated funds, with the bulk of the money coming from services rendered by a grader owned by the assembly.