The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Online News Editor
REHABILITATION of one of Bulawayo’s major roads, Masiyephambili Drive has reportedly been complete and now awaits commissioning as the country continues to reap benefits of the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme 2 (ERRP2).
The Government set aside $33.6 billion for the second phase of the ERRP, after the Government in February declared the country’s road network a state of disaster as most of them had become untrafficable following damage by heavy rains that were received across the country.
In Bulawayo, 65 major roads are being rehabilitated under the facility at an estimated cost of $625 million.
Speaking during a post Cabinet briefing on Tuesday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa revealed that Masiyephambili Drive in Bulawayo is one of the major roads in the country that had since been completed under the ERRP2 facility.
“The Emergency Roads Rehabilitation Programme 2 continues to register tangible milestones, as evidenced by the observable road rehabilitation activity on the ground. Highlights of the remarkable progress made to date include several major projects which have been completed and opened to traffic.
“These include the following, among others; rehabilitation and resealing of Masiyephambili Drive in Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, which projects are both ready for commissioning, rehabilitation and resurfacing of the Seke Road dual carriageway in Harare Metropolitan Province and construction of Nyamataka Bridge and a high level dual carriageway structure in Burma Valley, Manicaland Province,” said the Minister.
She revealed that a number of other major projects are nearing completion across the length and breadth of the country.
“It has also come to the attention of Cabinet that some criminal elements are clandestinely damaging road works carried out under the Emergency Roads Rehabilitation Programme 2, apparently to discredit Government efforts. Law enforcement agents have therefore intensified efforts to arrest the culprits and bring them to book,” said Min Mutsvangwa.
