Govt gets Dutch credit to reconstruct cocoa roads, Monday November 15, 2010, Spread
THE government has secured a €143 million credit facility from the Dutch government to reconstruct and improve some roads in the cocoa growing areas of the Western Region.
Among the roads to be reconstructed is the 88-kilometre Benkyema Junction-Osei Kojokrom road in the Juaboso and the Bia districts.
The Dutch funding will be used to complete 43 kilometres of the stretch, while the remaining 45 kilometres will be completed with funds secured from China.
The project, which is expected to start in the first quarter of 2011, is currently going through bidding.
The Minister of Roads and Highways, Mr Joe Gidisu, made this known when he led a team of officials from his ministry, the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) and some Members of Parliament (MPs) from cocoa growing areas to inspect roads in the Western Region following reports that bags of cocoa had been locked up because of the nature of roads running through the communities.
The Benkyema Junction-Osei Kojokrom road is a major highway linking Ghana to Cote d’Ivoire and also serves as a very important route for carting cocoa and timber to the Tema and Takoradi ports.
The 30-kilometre Enchi-Dadieso highway which links the two major towns in the Aowin-Suaman District has also been awarded to Big Aidoo Construction Limited for construction.
At Abuadukrom, also in the Aowin-Suaman District, the road is being graded to create access routes to a number of cocoa farms in the area.
At Nyankaman, also in the Aowin-Suaman District, a concrete bridge is being built across the Disue River by Akrow Bridge, an American construction firm, to replace an existing wooden one which residents say submerge during torrential rains.
Contractors were busy on the Enchi-Asankragwa road.
The 56- kilometre road, which started in 2007, is being constructed by Tops International Engineering (Ghana) Limited and was initially estimated to cost GH¢24 million but has seen a sharp increase to GH¢72 million.
Briefing the media, Mr Gidisu said the trip, which was his second in 10 months, had been an eye-opener, saying, “The challenge now is how to balance the national purse so that roads in the rural and urban areas receive attention to speed up the country’s economic development.”
He said the government remained committed to improving roads in the rural areas so they could continue playing their roles in building the country.
Mr Gidisu expressed regret that work on the Enchi-Asankragwa road had been awarded on contract at a time feasibility studies had not been completed, saying, “There is the need to inject discipline in the award of road contracts because it is not financially prudent for us to continue this way.”
The team also inspected roads in the Juaboso, Sefwi-Akontombra, Wassa Amenfi East and West districts.
Among the roads to be reconstructed is the 88-kilometre Benkyema Junction-Osei Kojokrom road in the Juaboso and the Bia districts.
The Dutch funding will be used to complete 43 kilometres of the stretch, while the remaining 45 kilometres will be completed with funds secured from China.
The project, which is expected to start in the first quarter of 2011, is currently going through bidding.
The Minister of Roads and Highways, Mr Joe Gidisu, made this known when he led a team of officials from his ministry, the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) and some Members of Parliament (MPs) from cocoa growing areas to inspect roads in the Western Region following reports that bags of cocoa had been locked up because of the nature of roads running through the communities.
The Benkyema Junction-Osei Kojokrom road is a major highway linking Ghana to Cote d’Ivoire and also serves as a very important route for carting cocoa and timber to the Tema and Takoradi ports.
The 30-kilometre Enchi-Dadieso highway which links the two major towns in the Aowin-Suaman District has also been awarded to Big Aidoo Construction Limited for construction.
At Abuadukrom, also in the Aowin-Suaman District, the road is being graded to create access routes to a number of cocoa farms in the area.
At Nyankaman, also in the Aowin-Suaman District, a concrete bridge is being built across the Disue River by Akrow Bridge, an American construction firm, to replace an existing wooden one which residents say submerge during torrential rains.
Contractors were busy on the Enchi-Asankragwa road.
The 56- kilometre road, which started in 2007, is being constructed by Tops International Engineering (Ghana) Limited and was initially estimated to cost GH¢24 million but has seen a sharp increase to GH¢72 million.
Briefing the media, Mr Gidisu said the trip, which was his second in 10 months, had been an eye-opener, saying, “The challenge now is how to balance the national purse so that roads in the rural and urban areas receive attention to speed up the country’s economic development.”
He said the government remained committed to improving roads in the rural areas so they could continue playing their roles in building the country.
Mr Gidisu expressed regret that work on the Enchi-Asankragwa road had been awarded on contract at a time feasibility studies had not been completed, saying, “There is the need to inject discipline in the award of road contracts because it is not financially prudent for us to continue this way.”
The team also inspected roads in the Juaboso, Sefwi-Akontombra, Wassa Amenfi East and West districts.
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