Tunis — The launch of a project to develop a bridge maintenance system was the focus of a memorandum inked on Wednesday between the Equipment and Housing Ministry and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

This project will ensure that the Tunisian side makes the most of Japanese technology and know-how, through capacity-building for the implementation of a database and a high-performance monitoring and decision-making support system, said JICA in a press release on Wednesday.

This system will be used to plan and carry out maintenance and repair operations on bridges that are directly managed by the Directorate General of Roads and Bridges (DGPC) and its various regional directorates, such as notably the Rades-La Goulette bridge, one the biggest JICA-funded infrastructure projects in Tunisia.

With the signing of the memorandum, JICA can now proceed with the recruitment of a multidisciplinary team of Japanese experts who will work for around three years with their DGPC counterparts, sharing their expertise with them.

This technical assisstance will also include training sessions in Tunisia and Japan, in addition to providing the necessary equipment for the implementation of this project.