Freetown — The EU funded Masiaka-Bo highway rehabilitation project has been completed and officially commissioned by President Ernest Bai Koroma on May 29.

The project started on 1st March 2006 and the overall project's life span was 50.4 months, and the expected completion date being 16 March 2010. The overall amount spent on the said project was 42.6 million Euros under the 9th and 10th EDF. The government of Sierra Leone contributed billions of Leones in the form of compensation payments for land along the road corridor and duty free concession for construction materials and machinery imported for the project.

The overall objective of the scheme is to improve access between the capital Freetown and the southeastern part of Sierra Leone and to increase the stock of all weather roads in order to promote the economic and social development in the project area of influence.

The project purpose is to reduce the cost of transport and time of travelling for those using the roads, increase in the quantum of safe all weather roads serving or directly leading to the agricultural, mining and trading centers in the northern, eastern and southern parts of the country, make access to deprived communities easier and create the means of delivering to those once isolated communities improved social and economic development.

The project faced a lot of challenges during the implementation stage. For instance, there were problems with duty free concession for plants, materials, equipments to be incorporated in the works; counterpart funding for compensation to land and property owners and resolution of contractor's claims.

It must be noted that our courage at the NAO lies in the fact that the government of Sierra Leone, the EU, contractor and consultant never wavered in their commitments, and dedication to the completion of the Masiaka-Bo highway. It is interesting to note that the European Union delegation and the government were very much keen about one thing - the completion of this project; as such this became the priority of the strategic meetings and operations with all stakeholders. They left no stone unturned and assisted the NAO to cope up with difficulties when the project work was sometimes under threats.

NAO can now safely, accurately and confidently report to Sierra Leoneans and the world at large that the Masiaka-Bo highway has been completed and ready for use. According to the director of the NAO, Ibrahim S. Kanu, the completion of the road is in line with the president's vision in his Agenda for Change to link the tribes or ethnic groups, villages, towns, cities and regions of the country by the development of a network of roads.

"At the national level, it will reduce the cost of transporting people and goods, promote commerce and foster political and economical integration of the country," he said. He also emphasized that at the sub-regional and regional levels, the road will also facilitate the movement of people and goods between Sierra Leone and Liberia and beyond, thereby promoting trade and regional integration and development to enhance the welfare of our people and foster the goals of regional integration as espoused in the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)

Kanu stressed that the completion of the highway "is indicative of the positive stride of our concerted efforts to develop Mama Salone because this road will drastically improve movement of human, goods and services from Freetown to the country's interior. Let us all help the government to protect this national asset".