Once a proud symbol of local empowerment and self-reliance, Nimba County's fleet of 22 yellow machines -- purchased over a decade ago to rehabilitate feeder roads -- now lies in ruin across the county's towns and villages. Despite successive local budgets totaling nearly US$7 million under the Unity Party-led government, residents and local officials say the multimillion-dollar investment has collapsed into waste, neglect, and political indifference.
In 2012, under the administration of former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the Nimba County Council approved the procurement of 22 brand-new heavy-duty machines from the County Development Fund at a cost of approximately US$4.5 million.
The purchase included three bulldozers, three 10-tire trucks, three motor graders, three compactors, three excavators, three backhoes, three front-end loaders, and one low-bed trailer for transporting the equipment. The goal was simple: to open feeder roads and connect remote farming communities to local markets -- a critical boost for Nimba's cocoa, rice, and palm farmers.
For a time, the initiative worked. The machines were used to reopen rural roads across Ganta, Saclepea, Bahn, and Yarwein Mehnsonnoh districts, significantly improving mobility and trade. But by the end of Sirleaf's tenure, the fleet had fallen into disrepair, largely due to poor maintenance and lack of technical oversight.
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When the Weah-led CDC government took office in 2018, the Project Management Committee (PMC) reportedly managed to recover a portion of the damaged machines and resumed limited roadwork. However, by 2022, the fleet had again been grounded -- this time for good.
Today, the once-celebrated "Nimba yellow machines" are scattered in varying states of decay: some rusting in the open in Saclepea and Ganta, others abandoned in Yarwein Mehnsonnoh or stripped for parts along roadside communities in southern Nimba.
Millions Spent, Little to Show
The Nimba County Council has passed two successive budgets under the current leadership. Together, these budgets have allocated over US$7 million for various county projects.
Headed by Superintendent Kou Meapeh Gono, the local leadership is said to be performing well in certain areas of infrastructural development, according to an opinion poll. The poll cites renovations of presidential and other official residential areas used by senior county officials as key achievements of her administration.
Yet, despite these expenditures, local residents and observers say little progress has been made.
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However, amid the poor condition of feeder roads across Nimba, residents have raised concerns about the state of the county's multi-million-dollar road-building equipment, which remains idle despite the two successive county budget years under the Unity Party-led government.
Over this period, millions of U.S. dollars have been spent on other projects, including an eight-member delegation's cultural trip to Japan--comprising the superintendent and several district commissioners--as well as Superintendent Gono's recent trip to France.
"Some amount of the two budgets we have passed in the county could have been used to fix a few pieces of the equipment to carry out road rehabilitation and open new alleys in most of our growing communities," said one county staff member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
When contacted by the Daily Observer, Peter Karngbay, Nimba's Development Officer and former Development Superintendent, confirmed that an assessment of the equipment is ongoing. "We are carrying on an assessment on the equipment," he said. "Afterward, we will decide what next to be done in consultation with the 55th Legislative Caucus of Nimba."
Currently, roads connecting Gborplay (near the Ivory Coast border) and Bahn (central Nimba) are in deplorable condition, severely hindering the movement of agricultural produce, particularly cocoa.
Meanwhile, some areas in central and lower Nimba have benefited from the involvement of Representative Musa Bility, who has spearheaded limited feeder road rehabilitation projects in his constituency.
While the hope of reviving the county's road-building equipment appears dim, local officials remain optimistic that the central government's plan to distribute new yellow machines to each county through the Ministry of Public Works could offer a fresh start for road maintenance and development in Nimba.
