Dormaa-Ahenkro charcoal sellers appeal for tricycles, storage facility

Indigenous women engaged in the charcoal trade in the Dormaa Central Municipality of the Bono Region have appealed to the government to provide them with tricycles to enhance their business activities and livelihoods.

The traders, operating at the Dormaa-Ahenkro new market site, said they needed the tricycles to transport firewood from the forest to the local market.

According to them, the machines would facilitate the movement of their goods, reduce the stress involved in transporting firewood and ease the burden of the high transportation charges they currently pay.

They also appealed for a storage facility to keep their bags of charcoal safe, citing persistent thefts at the new market site.

The charcoal sellers said they were relocated to the new market site to make way for the construction of the 24-hour market project at Dormaa-Ahenkro.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Dormaa-Ahenkro, the traders expressed concern about the increasing cases of charcoal theft at the new site, which they said were affecting the growth of their businesses.

They also noted that the space allocated to them to sell their products was inadequate and had only a few market sheds.

One of the sellers, Madam Alimata Fuseina, said they struggled to operate during the rainy season because of the lack of adequate shelter.

“When it rains, we are always left at the mercy of the weather,” she said.

She also expressed concern that their selling area was located close to a public toilet.

Another seller, Melinda Adoko, expressed concern about the decline in demand for charcoal in the area, saying the poor patronage was slowing down their businesses.