Sunyani (B/A) May 13, GNA - Mr Joe Gidisu, Minister of Roads and Highways, has announced that about GHC1.01 billion was generated by Road Fund between 2000 and 2010.

He said in 2010 a total of GH¢182.0 million was realized from the fund's various revenue sources as compared to GH¢136.0 million accrued in 2009.

He explained that the relatively significant upward jump was due to the increases in road and bridge tolls, vehicle registration fees, road user fees and International Transit Fees.

The Minister stated that GH¢185 million had been projected for 2011 so as to meet part of the road maintenance budget of the agencies which depend on the fund to undertake their maintenance programme and activities.

The current capacity of the fund could sustain only about 60 percent of the country's road maintenance needs, he added.

Nii Quaye Kumah Deputy Minister of Roads and Highways, read the Minister's speech at a public forum organised by the Ghana Road Fund Management Board under the theme: 93Financing of Road Maintenance" for about 200 participants. They included road contractors, Municipal/District Chief Executives and members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Transportation at Sunyani.

Mr Gidisu expressed regret that despite the above financial achievement the fund carried forward an indebtedness of GH¢74.2 million from 2010 to 2011, explaining that the situation posed 40 percent financing gap on the national road maintenance needs.

Mr Gidisu said as part of the solution to the revenue short-fall, the government had been studying some recommendations made by the Ministry of Roads and Highways to make the fund more responsive to the road maintenance needs.

He stressed that road construction and maintenance were very expensive ventures, citing that the cost of resurfacing one kilometre road was GH¢135,000 whilst resealing cost GH¢70,000 per kilometre.

The Minister said in 2001 the national roads network of about 39,000 kilometres but is now over 67,000 kilometres.

He said despite that massive expansion which should have blunted the improvement, the road condition mix had improved from 27 per cent good, 17 per cent fair and 56 per cent bad in 2001 became 41 per cent good, 27 per cent fair and 32 per cent bad at the end of 2008.

Mr George Aidoo, Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at Ghana Highway Authority, (GHA) who gave a presentation on behalf of Mr Anthony Essilfie, Chief Director, GHA, on 93Ghana's Road Programme and the Role of Maintenance", identified a number of challenges facing that sector.

They included not only inadequate logistics for project supervision but low delivery capacity of the local construction industry, thereby affecting the early completion of road projects and conversion of a large number of vehicles from the use of petrol to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) on which no levy was charged, he stressed.

Mr. Aidoo stated strategies to deal with those challenges among others were strengthening the monitoring and evaluation systems and the need for a realistic levy on LPG for vehicles to support accruals into the Road Fund.

He emphasized that the current levels of road user charges were low and, therefore, recommended an upward revision, stating that was the only way the nation could meet the financial requirements for a sustainable long-term maintenance of its road network in good condition.

Professor Mohammed Salifu, member of the Road Fund Management Board, in a presentation on 93The Ghana Road Fund: Funding Road Maintenance", pointed out poor budget discipline such as unrestrained awards of contracts by Agencies outside approved budgets as some of the key challenges confronting the fund management.

The engineer said: 93The seeming preference for expensive upgrading to the neglect of core maintenance activities -routine and periodic - also constitutes a challenge."

Prof Salifu indicated the situation resulted in deficit financing that was threatening to get out of hand as almost 40 per cent of the funds 2011 budget would go to service a Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) loan.

Prof Salifu complained that that the fund had been doing deficit financing because about GH¢ 250 million was required for adequate maintenance on yearly basis as compared to GH A2182.24 million that was realized in 2010.

He called for a national consensus across all political divides for a strong political leadership to increase the fuel levy by raising it to equal nine cents per litre, besides expanding it to cover use of LPG by vehicles.

Mr Kwadwo Nyamekye-Marfo, Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister, earlier in a welcoming address, said since the introduction of the new toll rates in February 2010, revenue generated from four toll booths at Bechem, Fiapre, Bamboi and Suronuase in the region had increased astronomically.

He indicated that statistically, before the new rates came into effect in February 2010, the amount received in January that year was GH¢17, 538.17 but

GHC 2155, 973 was generated in February, representing 889 per cent increase. Participants later at a forum argued that based on the user paid principle, for which a levy was charged on petrol and diesel; a levy must be placed on LPG used as fuel for road transportation.