President John Dramani Mahama has explained that the government is using multiple contractors on major road projects to prevent the prolonged delays that have characterised some infrastructure projects in the past.
He said major roads are now being divided into several lots and assigned to different contractors, allowing construction to take place simultaneously at different sections.
Speaking at a community engagement at the University for Business and Integrated Development Studies (UBIDS) in the Upper West Region, President Mahama said the approach was aimed at ensuring that major road projects were completed within realistic timelines.
He recalled that in the past, major roads were sometimes awarded to a single contractor, resulting in slow progress and projects remaining unfinished for years.
“There was a time when people believed some roads were never meant to be completed,” President Mahama said, explaining that changes in government often resulted in projects being halted.
He said the new arrangement had enabled about six contractors to work simultaneously on some major road projects, significantly accelerating construction.
President Mahama cited the Sawla-Wa Road as an example, saying the Roads and Highways Minister had recently inspected the project and warned three contractors whose performance was considered unsatisfactory.
He disclosed that portions of the contracts of the underperforming contractors could be terminated and reassigned to more active contractors.
The President said the contractor working from the Sawla end had already made impressive progress up to Yipala.
He added that the government is asking the contractor to deploy another construction team from Wa so that work could advance from both ends and meet in the middle.
President Mahama said most of the road projects are expected to be completed by the end of 2027, after which attention would increasingly shift to feeder roads.
He stressed that improving the road network was essential to facilitating the movement of people and goods and creating the conditions for faster economic development.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭
