Aflao is a

border town A border town is a town or city close to the boundary between two countries, states, or regions. Usually the term implies that the nearness to the border is one of the things the place is most famous for. With close proximities to a different coun ...

in the

Ketu South District Ketu South Municipal Assembly formerly Ketu South District, is an administrative unit in the Volta Region, Ghana. History Originally it was formerly part of the then-larger Ketu District on 10 March 1989, which was created from the former ...

in the

Volta Region Volta Region (or Volta) is one of Ghana's sixteen administrative regions, with Ho designated as its capital. It is located west of Republic of Togo and to the east of Lake Volta. Divided into 25 administrative districts, the region is multi- ...

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

on the

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

with

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

. Aflao is the twenty-eighth most populous

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...

in Ghana, in terms of population, with a population of 66,546 people (according to a 2012 estimate). The current municipal chief of Aflao is Hon. Maxwell Koffie Lugudor.

History

During the

Atlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...

, the town grew from interference from the

Anlo The Anlo Ewe are a sub-group of the Ewe people of approximately 6 million people, inhabiting southern Togo, southern Benin, southwest Nigeria, and south-eastern parts of the Volta Region of Ghana; meanwhile, a majority of Ewe are located in the ...

, towards the west, and Little Popo (

Aného Aného, previously known as Anecho, Petit Popo or Little Popo, is a town in southeastern Togo, lying on the Gulf of Guinea near the border of Benin. It is situated 45 km east of the capital Lomé, between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Togo in ...

) towards the east, located in present-day

. During this time, it change hands from the Danish to the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

in 1850 due to

slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

ending. In 1879, The British added Aflao into the Gold Coast after initially not being included. During the late twentieth century, the border became a site of reincurring tensions. At the peak of the 1982-83 revolution, the town was under constant surveillance as border guards and cadres attempted to enforce a

curfew A curfew is an order that imposes certain regulations during specified hours. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to remain indoors during the evening and nighttime hours. Such an order is most often issued by public authorit ...

. During this time, from 1986 to 1987, Togolese officers installed a fence along the border's southern stretch after attacks from Ghanaian insurgents.

Economy

The Diamond Cement Ghana Limited factory is located at Aflao. In early 2014, a 2.5 km rail siding was completed to connect the cement works to the port of

Lomé Lomé ( , ) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in Togo, largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437

. This siding crosses the border from

and is of the gauge. The total average annually volume of trade that goes through the border crossing, from data in 1996, is .

Demographics

As of a 2012 estimate, Aflao has a population of 66,546 people. Most of the population is religious, with the largest religion being Christianity. Other popular religions include Islam and

traditional African religions The beliefs and practices of Demographics of Africa, African people are highly diverse, and include various ethnic religions.Encyclopedia of African Religion (Sage, 2009) Molefi Kete Asante Generally, these traditions are oral tradition, oral rath ...

. Historically, Aflao people believed in one universal goddess named

Mawu Mawu-Lisa (alternately: Mahu) is a creator goddess, associated with the Sun and Moon in Gbe mythology and West African Vodun. Mawu and Lisa are divine, put together they are an agender god. Mawu (Mahu, Mau) and Lisa are the children of Nana Bulu ...

, which is believed to be all powerful and everywhere. The majority of the population is Ewe, followed by the

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

and

Ga-Adangbe The Ga-Dangbe, Ga-Dangme, Ga-Adangme or Ga-Adangbe are an ethnic group in Ghana, Togo and Benin. The Ga or Gan and Dangbe or Dangme people are grouped as part of the Ga–Dangme languages, Ga–Dangme Ethnolinguistics, ethnolinguistic group. The ...

people.

Administration

The town's municipality has a mayor–council form of government. The mayor (executive chief) is appointed by the

president of Ghana The president of the Republic of Ghana is the elected head of state and head of government of Ghana, as well as commander-in-chief of the Ghana Armed Forces. The current president of Ghana is John Mahama, who won the 2024 presidential elect ...

and approved by the town council, the Ketu South Municipal Assembly. As of 2024, the current mayor of the municipal is Hon. Maxwell Koffie Lugudor.

Geography

Aflao is located on the eastern coast of Ghana and is a major border town neighboring

Municipality area

The town is also located in the

Ketu South Municipal District Ketu South Municipal Assembly formerly Ketu South District, is an administrative unit in the Volta Region, Ghana. History Originally it was formerly part of the then-larger Ketu District on 10 March 1989, which was created from the former A ...

, which has a total land area of . The municipality bordered

to the east,

Keta Municipal District Keta Municipal District is one of the eighteen districts in Volta Region, Ghana. Originally created as an ordinary district assembly in 1988 when it was known as Keta District, which was created from the former Anlo District Council, until it was ...

towards the west, the Ketu North District to the north and the

Gulf of Guinea The Gulf of Guinea (French language, French: ''Golfe de Guinée''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Golfo de Guinea''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Golfo da Guiné'') is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez i ...

towards the south.

Climate

Aflao has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Aw''), experiencing a wet season and a dry season annually whilst the dry season occurs from December to February. The wet usually lasts from April to July or from September to October. The mean annual rainfall ranges from while the mean monthly temperatures are usually from .

Culture

Aflao is located in the Aflao traditional area has Togbui Amenya Fiti V as its

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for a king or queen or the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a Chiefdom, chief-based system. This term is used occasionally ...

. He is the traditional ruler of the land and performs traditional administrative and ceremonial functions in the area.

Transport

At the border crossing, the most popular mode of transportation is pushcarts, followed by trucks/ cargo trucks.

Healthcare

Aflao is home to a port health unit, a facility under the Port Health Directorate (division of the

Ghana Health Service The Ghana Health Service (GHS) is a Ghanaian government body established in 1996 as part of the Health Sector Reform of Ghana. The Health Service is under the Ministry of Health (Ghana), Ministry of Health. The health service primarily administers ...

) which helps to combat public health emergencies at Ghana's land border crossings.

Notable people

* Dzifa Gomashie (born 1965), former Deputy Minister of Tourism * Joseph Kossivi Ahiator (born 1956), artist *

Komla Dumor Komla Afeke Dumor (3 October 1972 – 18 January 2014) was a Ghanaian journalist who worked for BBC World News and was the main presenter of its programme '' Focus on Africa''. Early life and education Dumor was born in Accra, Ghana. His fat ...

(1972-2014), journalist

Explanatory notes

References

Bibliography

External links

* * * {{Authority Control Populated places in the Volta Region Ghana–Togo border crossings