Accra (Greater Accra) 26 May '99

The Deputy Minister of Roads and Transport, Mr Steve Akorli, on Tuesday told Parliament that the government was looking for funds to rehabilitate the Kumasi-Techiman road.

He said the road originally, formed part of the Kumasi-Tamale-Bolgatanga project being financed by the Overseas Economic Co-operation Fund (OECF).

He explained that due to additional works on the Tamale-Bolgatanga road, including realignment, construction of culverts and drainage, the funds are not adequate to cover the Kumasi-Techiman section of the road.

The Deputy Minister said in the interim, resurfacing of the first six kilometres of the road from the end of the asphalt at Suame Magazine, Kumasi, has been given on contract, while the filling of pothole and resealing of the remaining sections are on-going.

Mr Akorli was responding to a Parliamentary question by Mr F. K. Buor, NPP-Offinso South, who wanted to know when asphalt would be put on the Kumasi-Techiman road.

On the Nsawam-Anyinam road, Mr Akorli said the Mobile Maintenance Unit of the Ghana Highway Authority is rehabilitating sections of it.

He said marking of the road to enhance safety has been programmed while the contract award process for converting the Achimota-Anyinam portion of the road to a dual carriage is being finalised.

In an answer to a question on the tarring of the Akosombo-Gyakiti road, the Deputy Minister said the Department of Feeder Roads do not have immediate plans to tar the 15-kilometre road.

He said, however, that it has been proposed to re-gravel the road under the Department's 1999 development programme, adding that 60 million cedis has been provided this year for the project.

He announced that the 25-kilometre Donkokrom-Mem-Chemfre-Bruben feeder road is included in the three-year rolling programme for re-gravelling this year, under the government's Periodic Maintenance Programme.

On the rehabilitation and tarring of the Adoagyiri-Coaltar-Oworam road, Mr Akorli told the questioner that 10 kilometres of the road was awarded on contract in late 1995 out of which five kilometres were completed.

He said three kilometres of the road have been programmed for execution this year, in spite of tight budgetary constraints, adding that sections of the road would be tackled in subsequent years.

Giving the reason for the delay in the first phase of the Kete-Krachi town streets project, the Deputy Minister said lack of stone quarry within economic distance and haulage route, have contributed to the delay.

He said 1.4 billion cedis has, however, been made available in this year's budget for work on the project to continue.