Obuasi is a gold mining community and town which is the capital of the Obuasi Municipal District in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It lies in the southern part of the Obuasi Municipal, south-west of Ashanti capital city Kumasi. Obuasi has a population of 175,043 people. Obuasi mining community has a mixture of the Ashanti people culture and the semi-island exclave Ashantiland.

Obuasi is home to the Obuasi Gold Mine, one of the largest gold deposits on Earth. The Gold Coast region was named after the large amount of gold mined historically at Obuasi and the broader Ashanti Region.

Obuasi

Economy

Obuasi is known for the Obuasi Gold Mine, one of the largest underground gold mines in the world. Gold has been mined on the site since at least the seventeenth century.

Obuasi

The Obuasi Gold Mine is now being refurbished after being placed under care and maintenance in 2014. The mine was anticipated to reach full production in 2022, with a mine life of more than 20 years.

Obuasi

Transportation

Train and air

Obuasi train station is on the Ashanti railway line to and from Kumasi (39 miles or 59.4 kilometres or 1 hour 2 minutes south-west of Kumasi) and Obuasi also has an airstrip and airport.

Tourist attractions

Tourists can visit the town's mine by arranging with the Public Relations Directorate of Ashanti Goldfields Corporation (AGC). Operated by the Ashanti Goldfields Corporation (AGC), formerly the State-owned Ashanti company Ashanti Goldfields Corporation (AGC), Ashanti Goldfields Corporation (AGC) was the largest mine until the AGC company merged in 2004 to create the world's second-largest gold producer, Anglo Gold Ashanti (AGA) with the merging of the South African company AngloGold.

Education

Obuasi is the site of the Obuasi Senior High Technical School, a coeducational second cycle public high school. Christ the King Catholic Senior High School, St. Margaret Senior High School, and the College of Integrated Health Care. Obuasi is the site for the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)-Obuasi Campus.

Climate

Obuasi has a semi-equatorial tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) with two rainy seasons. The main rainy season is from March to July, with May and June being typically the year's wettest months, whilst a lighter rainy season occurs from September to November. The average annual rainfall in Obuasi is around and the average temperature with highs of and lows of . Relative humidity is around 75% - 80% in the wet seasons.

Healthcare

Obuasi is also noted for its healthcare facilities, such as the AGA Hospital owned by the Anglo Gold corporation, and also for a private health facility, St. Jude Hospital, owned by Dr George Owusu-Asiedu. The facility is noted for many successful surgeries and numerous successful births at the maternity division of the hospital.

Golfing and stadium

Obuasi has a golf course, and the Obuasi Ashanti Gold Sporting Club, a professional football club, is based at Obuasi's Len Clay Stadium.

Notable people

Notable people from Obuasi mining town include: Sam E. Jonah (KBE), the former CEO of Ashanti Goldfields Company, Jonathan Mensah, Ghanaian footballer Yaw Boakye Yiadom, John Mensah, Ghanaian footballer.

Sister cities

As of 13 September 2008, Obuasi has been a sister city of Riverside, California, United States.

See also

Obuasi Gold Mine

References

Populated places in the Ashanti Region