Ghana Road Fund to accrue 1.2 trillion cedis this year

Tamale, Sept. 21, GNA - The Ghana Road Fund is expected to accrue 1.2 trillion cedis this year to meet part of the maintenance budget of agencies operating under, Dr Richard Anane, Minister of Transportation said in a speech read for him at a forum on Wednesday. He said however, that the Fund experienced a shortfall in projected revenue of 76 billion cedis as at June this year.

Dr. Anane said 33 per cent of total national investment budget of about 4.3 trillion cedis had been devoted to road construction and maintenance, saying it demonstrated the government's commitment towards the economic growth and the overall development of the country.

The forum was to sensitise the stakeholders on the role of the fund in the financing of road maintenance and solicit inputs as to how more revenue could be mobilised for the fund to sustain its operations. District Chief Executives, District Coordinating Directors, Members of Parliament, Contractors, Members of Ghana Private Roads and Transport Union and Officials of the Ghana Highways Authority attended the forum, which was on the theme: "Financing Road Maintenance".

Dr. Anane announced that since the inception of the fund in 1996, 4.155 trillion cedis had accrued to the fund, representing 61 per cent of road maintenance requirement in the country. He said the remaining 39 per cent deficit in the financing of road maintenance was a worry to the government and that the government was considering increasing the levies to mobilise more money for the fund.

Dr. Anane said for any meaningful impact to be made on poverty reduction programme, the road network must be fully developed and regularly maintained to ensure an efficient transportation system. The fund had helped to accelerate road maintenance from 20 per cent good, 19 per cent fair and 61 per cent poor in 1997 and 36 per cent good, 27 per cent fair and 37 per cent poor in 2005.

In a speech read for him, Northern Regional Minister Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, bemoaned the deplorable conditions of roads in the region, which he said had been a source of worry to the people. He said some parts of the region had always been cut off during the rainy season and mentioned the Fulfulso-Damongo-Sawla road, which linked the Northern Region to the Upper West Region as one of such roads. Alhaji Idris appealed to the government to regularly maintain the few good roads to facilitate the evacuation of foodstuffs from the food producing areas to the marketing centres to help reduce poverty levels among the people.

He said the region had a total road network of 9,711 kilometres out of which 2,617 kilometres were highways and 6,094 kilometres were feeder roads. About 291 kilometres of roads were asphalt, 482 kilometres bituminous surfacing and 1,542 kilometres gravel surfacing. Besides, about 1,863 kilometres of feeder roads were fully engineered while 2,322 kilometres were partially engineered with 1,908 kilometres in a poor state. 21 Sept. 06