Mim, Ahafo

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Mim is a city in the Asunafo North Municipal District in the Ahafo Region of Ghana. It is a nodal town between Sunyani and Goaso on the N12 Highway. The distance from Mim to Sunyani is 64 km whiles that of Mim to Goaso is 14 km. Mim has direct routes to: Kumasi; Kenyasi;Dormaa Ahenkro; Sunyani; Nkrankwanta and Sefwi Debiso.

Mim
Mim High Street from Goaso Direction
Mim High Street from Goaso Direction
Nickname: 
Industrial town of Ahafo[1]
Mim is located in Ghana
Mim
Mim
Coordinates: 6°54′22″N 2°33′47″W / 6.90611°N 2.56306°W / 6.90611; -2.56306
Country Ghana
RegionAhafo Region
DistrictAsunafo North Municipal District
Sub-DistrictMim Urban Council[2]
Time zoneGMT
 • Summer (DST)GMT

Mim is the seat of the Mim traditional Area with other big towns such as Kasapin, Kwadwo Addaikrom, Bediako, Gambia No.1 & No.2, Dominase, Gyasikrom all under the Mim paramountcy.

Mim is known for producing timber, cocoa and cashew.

According to the 2021 population census, Mim township has a population of 31,538. This makes Mim the largest town in Ahafo Region and that of Asunafo North Municipal District.[3][4][2][5][6][7][8]

History

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Mim, Ahafo is part of Asante. Mim is a Twi word for palm trees. Ahafo is a Twi word meaning hunters.

The land which Ahafo people occupy today originally belonged to the Aowin people whose Chief was Abirimoro Akwojan.

Sometime in the eighteenth century, Asantehene Osei TuTu I was shot and killed by the people of Akyem while he was crossing River Pra on a canoe.

Asantehene Opoku Ware I who succeeded Osei TuTu I decided to avenge the death of his predecessor. Whiles Asantehene Opoku Ware I was at war front in Akyem, terrible news of Abirimoro's invasion of Kumasi reached him at the battlefield in Akyem.

Opoku Ware I dispatched Akyempimhene Owusu Afriyie and Bantamahene Amankwaa Tia to pursue Abirimoro and his invaders. The Akyempimhene accepted the request but he deputed his younger brother Hiahene Sabin, Nyanahinhene, Nkwaie-paninhene and Buaso Odikro to pursue Abirimoro and his warriors.

Bantamahene Amankwaa Tia also dispatched some chiefs and Brefo Apau also joined the chiefs with his own warriors to pursue Abirimoro and his warriors who had run away with a sister of the Asantehene and other precious properties they had looted.

The warriors chased Abirimoro and his forces from Ahafo lands and pursued them across the Tano and Bia Rivers to as far as the bank of River Manza in what is now La Cote D'Ivoire. The Abirimoro war lasted three years.

Asantehene Opoku Ware I presented the newly conquered territory (Ahafo lands) to the chiefs as a gift. Each of the chiefs was asked to take care of or control the area he had conquered.

Brefo Apau and his warriors were after the victory gifted Mim, Goaso, Hwidiem, Achrensua, Kenyasi, Ayomso lands. Brefo Apau was giving a stool as Akwaboahene by the Asantehene. The Twi term Akwaboahene means "having gone to help the chiefs in the war". The village where Brefo Apau and his people lived near Kumasi became Akwaboah Village.

The warriors established their outpost in a section of the forest to spy on enemy incursions. Their outpost was in a place which was full of palm trees. They used the branches of the palm trees for shelter and referred to the area as Mem or Mim which is a Twi word for palm trees.

Mim was the first town established by the warriors and it became the capital of the Akwaboah stool land with Goaso, Kenyasi, Achrensua, Hwidiem lands placed under the control of Mim Chief.[9][10]

Festival

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The people of Mim celebrate the Akwansramu festival and this ceremony is usually held in December.

Akwansramu is a Twi term for espionage. The Akwansramu festival is celebrated to commemorate the Asante-warriors patrol of the Mim-Akwaboa lands averting enemy's incursion on Kumasi.

Akwansramu is one of Ghana's many festivals that see attendance from people from all walks of life including the diaspora.

The Akwansramu is a staple of Ghana's colourful, vibrant and diverse cultural expression, bringing together people from all walks of life to celebrate themes of victory, harvest and gratitude in unity.[11][12][13]

Economy

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Mim can be described as an averagely dynamic center for farming, trading and industrial activities.

Agriculture:

The fundamental occupation of residents of Mim is farming, which is cultivation of cash crops and food crops. The predominant cash crops grown in this area are cocoa and cashew.[14] Mim and its surrounding towns such as: Goaso, Bediako, Gambia No2, Kasapin & Kwadwo Addaikrom produce about a quarter of the foodstuffs that are sent to Accra and Tema.[8]

Industry:

The tropical forest reserves in this area serve as source of raw materials for the numerous timber companies in Mim. The Ayum Forest Products Limited formerly Mim Timbers, Mim Scanstyle Company Limited, Ocean-wood company limited, Supremo Wood processing co. Ltd amongst tens of timber firms located in Mim exist because of the abundance of timber in this area. However, the recent illegal chainsaw operations are fast depleting the forest reserves and are threatening the existence of these timber companies which provide hundreds of employment to the teeming population.[15][16][13]

 
Ayum Forest Products Ltd. (A. F. P. L)

The cashew plantations in Mim area also provide constant source of raw materials for the Mim Cashew and Agricultural products Ltd which produces the 'Mim Cashew Brandy'.[17][14][18]

 
Mim Cashew plantation
 
Mim Cashew Co. Main Entrance
 
Mim Cashew Plantation
 
Mim Swimming pool

Tourism

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One of the tourist sites in Mim is the Mim Bour or 'Mim mountains'. These Rocky Mountains are famous tourist attraction center in the Ahafo Region of Ghana. According to history, the paramount chief of Mim used to climb the Mim bour whenever he wanted to address his people, and it is also said that, from the top, he could see all the areas within his jurisdiction and even as far as Techiman and Kumasi. From the top of the Mim Bour, you have a plain view of the cashew plantation and surrounding areas.[19][13][20][3]

 
Tourists at Mim Bour

Mim Lake is another tourist attraction located off the Mim-Kenyasi road. It's about 1 km away north of the Mim township. This is an artificial lake where tourists and local people visit for leisure, canoeing and site seeing. This lake is also known as 'Anwomasu lake'.

Education

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Mim has several educational institutions including:

References

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  1. ^ "Mim Cries For Development Projects". Modern Ghana.
  2. ^ a b "MIM Disappointed In Mahama …Over Re-Appointment Of MCE". Modern Ghana.
  3. ^ a b Composite Budget 2019 Ministry of Finance
  4. ^ "Mim Cries For Development Projects". ModernGhana. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Mim Cashew and Agricultural Products, Ltd". GEPA Buyer Portal. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Mim Cashew - Welcome". mimcashew. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Opinion: MIM Deserves Ahafo Regional Capital". WatchGhana. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Lage – Ghana Greentech Academy". Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  9. ^ Kwarteng, Kwame O. (2002). "The Asante Conquest of Ahafo in the 18th Century: A Historical Legacy". Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana (6): 59–66. ISSN 0855-3246.
  10. ^ "Ahafo Historical day May 2,1896". GhanaWeb. 2 May 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  11. ^ Online, Peace FM. "Armed Bandits "Seize" Mim Chiefs Run To IGP For Succour". Peacefmonline - Ghana news.
  12. ^ "Festivals In Ghana". Nhoc. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  13. ^ a b c "Mim Cries For Development Projects". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  14. ^ a b Simpson, Tony. "Mim Cashew implementing new strategies to revamp operations". Ghana News Agency.
  15. ^ "President Akufo Addo Gives Mim Ayum Timber Company a Stimulus Package. Ahafo Regional Minister Reveals. – Ahafo Regional Coordinating Council". 6 January 2020.
  16. ^ Shakespeare, William (4 February 2020). Henry V. ISBN 978-1-9821-0941-7. OCLC 1105937654.
  17. ^ "Cashew nuts rot as Ministry imposes ban on export". GhanaWeb. 17 March 2016.
  18. ^ Ashiadey, Bernard Yaw (17 June 2020). "Mim Cashew receives support from SECO, GIZ to combat COVID-19".
  19. ^ "Gov't stimulus package brings back Ayum Forest Products Company Limited". Modern Ghana.
  20. ^ "South African High Commission Counselor of Economic Embarks On Two (2) Days Visit To Ahafo Region". 8 June 2021.
  21. ^ "61st Independence Anniversary In Mim". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
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