KATIMA MULILO – In its continued effort to make roads accessible to rural communities, the government has embarked on a project to construct gravel roads to schools and clinics in Makanga and Masida in the Zambezi region.
These include the District Road (DR)
3 562 to Makanga, which is approximately 3.54 kilometres (km) long, and the DR 3 525 road to Masida, which is 3.04km.
The total length of this project is 6.58km.
The access roads commence at the intersection with TR 8/6: Kongola and Katima Mulilo. The project is fully-funded by the government at a total cost of N$11.5 million. The project is expected to create about 100 jobs at peak production.
Works and transport minister John Mutorwa officiated at the ground-breaking ceremony last Thursday for the construction of the access roads.
He said the event is not just the beginning of a construction project.
It is the start of a new chapter for rural communities – a chapter of connectivity, opportunity and progress. “Our rural areas are the heart and soul of our nation. They are where the roots of our heritage grow strong, and where the potential of our future lies. Yet, for too long, the communities in these areas have faced challenges of isolation and lack of infrastructure, limiting their potential to fully contribute to the nation’s growth. That changes today,” he assured.
Mutorwa also commissioned the Sangwali access roads at Kgotla, as well as the Nakabolelwa-Mbalasinte-Kasika road project. In 2013, the government, through the Ministry of Works and Transport, decided to address challenges with regard to providing access to schools and clinics by creating a nationwide programme called Construction of Access Roads to Schools and Clinics.
Subsequently, the Ministry of Works and Transport, via the Ministry of Finance and the National Planning Commission, approved a vote and budget appropriations to deliberately embark on improving access to schools and clinics nationwide.
Since then, Mutorwa claimed the assigned agency, the Roads Authority (RA), has made significant strides with the construction of access roads to schools and clinics to improve accessibility, mobility and timely service delivery of public services.
“Today, we are here to celebrate the continuation of our rural access roads’ programme for Makanga and Masida settlements,” he noted.
The contractor on this project is Odjove Trading and Construction CC, while the consultant is Tulipamwe Consulting Engineers (Pty) Ltd.
The overall supervision will be done by the RA. The project will be constructed over five months. Mutorwa said the project is paving the way for a future where no community is left behind. He believes these roads will serve as arteries of opportunity, linking farmers to markets, students to schools, patients to healthcare and families to one another.
He then called on communities to give their full cooperation to the contractors so that the work can be completed within the specified time and budget.