MONROVIA, Montserrado – The German government has signed a new agreement with the Ministry of Public Works to provide US$300,000 to finance the maintenance of 41 km of small community roads, including a bridge in Monrovia.

The agreement is part of the German government’s Capacity Development in the Transport Sector program, which aims to assist responsible public institutions and Liberia’s private sector to implement reforms in accordance with the National Transport Master Plan. It is implemented by the German development corporation, GIZ, on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany and co-funded by the European Union.

GIZ earlier supported the Liberian government through the same project to develop the National Road Fund. The advisory support it provided has helped to build up planning capacities and enabled officials to set priorities for road maintenance.

GIZ disclosed in a press release that the US$300,000 will be used to administer, supervise, and carry out routine maintenance on the roads.

“The project is implemented by the Ministry of Public Works and funds will be channeled through the newly established office of the National Road Fund,” the release disclosed.

The roads include the Clara Town-Jamaica Road, Neezoe-Parker Paint-Zayzay Community, A. B. Tolbert Road, and others. The project is expected to last for six months, beginning in January 2019.

Public Works Minister Mobutu Nyenpan underlined the importance of the seed financing by the German government and stressed the need for continuous partnership.

Claude Langley, deputy minister for technical services at the ministry, stressed the importance of the project.

“Roads are technical systems like cars. Without maintenance, a car would break down very soon. Routine maintenance of roads consists, for example, of cleaning drainages and culverts, small repairs of potholes, regrading, and reshaping,” he said.

Featured photo by Lloyd Massah