In 2020, government through the Ministry of Roads and Highways began the construction of a bridge over the Kunbangre River at Gambibgo in the Bolgatanga East District.
The construction of the bridge, together with a road network linking the Bolgtanga – Tamale Highway at BOST to the Zuarungu stretch of the Bolga – Bawku Road, was meant to ease traffic in the Bolgatanga township and improve the movement of goods in and out of the country.
It was also intended to lessen pressure on the towhship roads and thus, prevent their rapid deterioration.
According to a joint Memorandum submitted to Parliament in 2018, seeking approval of a credit facility to finance the project and many others across the country, works on the bridges were scheduled to be completed within 24 months from the commencement date.
Therefore, the Zuarungu – Gambibgo Bridge should have been completed by 2022 per the Memorandum submitted to Parliament by the Ministers for Roads and Highways, and Finance.
Four years down the lane, however, not only has the bridge been abandoned, materials meant for its construction have also been left to rot and some stolen.
“Since 2021 that they’ve halted this project, we have not seen the contractor again and what he (the contractor) told us was that he raised certificates and they have not paid him,” Assemblymember for Gambibgo Electoral Area, Alhaji Bukari Mohammudu told this reporter.
Bags of cement caked, iron rods stolen
At the project site at Kumbangre, equipment and materials that were being used for the construction have been left at a yard.
Bags of cement could be seen piled at one corner of the yard partly covered with tarpaulin. According to Bukari Mohammudu, there are about 300 bags of cement left at the site.
The cement is caked now as it is abandoned under the rains especially in the rainy season, Alhaji Bukari observed. In effect, the hundreds of bags of cement bought with proceeds of the loan contracted from Czech Republic have been rendered unusable, constituting a loss to the state.
Iron rods left at the site were also reportedly stolen, prompting the contractor to contract two security guards to watch over what have been left of the building materials, community members say.
“Sometimes you would be there and they (security guards) will call you (saying) for two months or so they have not paid them and they want to find out if you can call the contractor. But looking at the nature of the contract, I think the contractor has also done well,” Alhaji Bukari remarked, adding “For almost four years now, he has been paying these security guys that are at the side”.
The contractor for the project is A & R Hatoum Limited. Though the implementing agency is the Ghana Highways Authority, the Upper East Regional Office of the Highways Authority has not been involved in its execution. Instead, it was being supervised by a supervising engineer, JIT Investment Limited, who, officials at the regional Highways Authority say, reported directly to the Chief Director at the Ministry.
The building materials and equipment that have been left to rot and some stolen, sources say, were supplied by the supervising engineer.
When this reporter contacted the Chief Director via Whatsapp in September to enquire about the project and why materials have been left unattended to, the Chief Director did not respond to the questions posed but asked that the reporter make his inquiries through the proper channel of communication.
He, however, failed to reply when he was probed on the right channels through which such inquiries could be directed for response.
47 million euros loan for construction of 50 bridges
In July 2018, the then Ministers for Roads and Highways, and Finance, Akwasi Amoako-Atta and Ken Ofori-Atta respectively submitted a joint Memorandum to Parliament seeking approval of a loan agreement between the Government of Ghana and Československá obchodní banka, a.s. (ČSOB) of Czech Republic to finance the construction of 50 bridges in selected areas across Ghana.
The Memorandum explained that the construction of the bridges would remove traffic bottlenecks at water crossings and ensure all year-round access to farms, schools, hospitals, market and other social amenities. It added that the projects, when completed, would boost economic activities especially in the beneficiary areas and thus, urged Parliament to okay the agreement.
The building of the bridges forms part of the terms of an MoU signed in 2007 with Knights a.s., a Czech Republican company to deliver 200 of such infrastructural projects.
Due to limited funds, the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Accra said on its website, the contract has been restructured to be delivered in four tranches of 50 each. The contract for the execution of the first tranche was signed in April 2019 between the Ghana government and Knight a.s.
Funds for the projects were also secured after Parliament approved the credit facility agreement February same year. 20 of the bridges are expected to be built under the Department of Feeder Roads, another 20 under the Ghana Highway Authority and the remaining 10 under the Department of Urban Roads.
The Zuarungu – Gambibgo Bridge is part of the 20 to be executed under the auspices of the Ghana Highway Authority. Construction works on it and most of the bridges began in 2020 and were supposed to be completed by 2022.
Contractor abandons project
Significant amount of work has been done at the project site and the bridge has neared completion. But the contractor left site more than 2 years ago and has not returned after government failed to pay it, a top official of the company executing the project told this reporter.
The official, who did not speak on record, said the company raised several certificates for payment and despite constant assurances by government since 2022, a penny has yet to be paid.
He indicated that the company will only return to continue the work if it receives payment for the certificates it has raised.
The 47 million euros secured to finance the building of this and the 49 other bridges, a source familiar with the projects’ execution said, has been exhausted.
Thus, government will have to source additional funding if it wants the Zuarungu – Gambibgo Bridge completed.
But as the standoff between government and the contractor over payment lingers, the people of Ghana are denied the benefit of the project and the state may keep on incurring losses as materials and equipment are abandoned at the site.
