Hleve: The Forgotten Town Where Women and Children Struggle for Basic Social Amenities

HLEVE: The Forgotten Town in South Tongu Where Women and Children Struggle for Water, Toilets, and Education

By: Harry Ahovi | Hleve, South Tongu – Volta Region

Hleve is a small, peaceful, and fast-growing farming community in the South Tongu District of the Volta Region. Predominantly inhabited by women and children, the town is rich in resilience but poor in basic social amenities.

Despite its growth, Hleve lacks what many communities take for granted safe drinking water, a public toilet facility, decent school infrastructure, a library, and an ICT centre.

Residents Share Water Source With Animals

Residents say their biggest challenge is water. Every morning, women and school girls trek long distances to fetch water from unsafe sources, often shared with livestock. The water is used for drinking, cooking, and bathing.

According to residents, the situation has led to frequent cases of water-borne diseases and increased health expenses.

“Our greatest pain is water. If we get clean water, you have solved half our problems,” said Mama Dakpoesi II(Queen mother of Hlevi).

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No Public Toilet Facility

The community has no public toilet facility. As a result, residents, including women and adolescent girls, resort to open defecation, a practice they describe as undignified and unsafe.

Community members say the lack of a toilet facility poses serious health and safety risks, particularly for women and girls.

Education Under Threat

At the Hleve Basic School, teaching and learning is hampered by poor infrastructure. The school block is dilapidated and overcrowded, with inadequate furniture and learning materials. Some pupils are forced to study under trees, and academic work is disrupted whenever it rains.

Beyond the physical structure, the school lacks two critical facilities for modern education: a library and an ICT laboratory.

Teachers say pupils have no access to supplementary readers to improve literacy, and have never had practical ICT lessons.

“In this era where children in urban centres are learning coding and computing, our children have never touched a computer. How will they compete?” the master lamented. 

Community Appeals For Support

In response to these challenges, the Chiefs, Elders, Women’s Groups, and Youth of Hleve have launched the Hleve Community Development Project, appealing to government, NGOs, corporate organisations and philanthropists for support.

The community is seeking assistance to provide:

1. A mechanized borehole for safe water
2. A modern public toilet facility
3. Renovation and expansion of the basic school
4. A community library to enhance reading and learning
5. An ICT Lab / Digital Learning Centre to promote digital literacy

The community leadership says even minimal support will significantly transform living conditions and educational outcomes in Hleve.

“We are not a lazy community. We are farmers and traders who work hard to feed our families and the district. We are only asking for a helping hand to get the basic amenities every Ghanaian deserves,” said Mr. Sedofia, son of the Queen mother and development advocate for Hleve.