PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO COMMISSIONS TWO COCOA ROADS IN OTI REGION

Date: 23rd October 2020

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has commissioned the 64-kilometre Dodiokope – Borae Junction – Kete Krachi roads in the Oti region, which was funded by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) under its Cocoa Roads Programme.

The roads, which were in deplorable states before construction, were upgraded into bitumen surface routes; markedly reducing vehicular travel time. They were also completed ahead of schedule and some GH₵20.5 million under budget.

The first project was the construction of the Borae Junction to Dodiokope road (11.05km - 28.05km) and the second project, which was separated into two (2) lots, were the upgrading of the Kete Krachi to Buya road (10km - 30km) and the construction/upgrading of the Kete Krachi to Buya road (30km - 56.9km). The roads were constructed by First Sky Limited.

Speaking at the durbar held on Thursday, 22 October 2020 at Borae in the Krachi West District, to commission the roads, President Akufo-Addo said the completed roads will enhance communities along the route in the production of staples, fishing and their engagement in other economic activities in the Krachi West and Krachi Nchumuru Districts of the Oti Region and beyond.

He added that “the roads will also serve as a major route for the transportation of yams from Oti and the Northern Regions of the country to the south”.

The road projects which were originally awarded to the contractor in 2016 under the Cocoa Roads Programme were later suspended by the Management of COCOBOD to enable the auditing of all cocoa roads, citing anomalies in some awarded contracts.

Following the auditing, the projects were repackaged to ensure greater value for money, the President said. “The result is the quality roads that we are witnessing here today and the over GH₵20 million saving made”; having brought the total cost of the roads down from GH₵176.5 million to GH₵156 million.

Speaking in an interview after the commissioning, Eric Seddy Kutortse, the Chairman of First Sky Ltd said "the road was in an unmotorable state. It was such that commuters plying the road could start in the morning and spend the entire day on the road before getting to the other end, which is Kete Krachi. In cases were there were downpours the journey becomes even worse".

He noted that constructing the road has been of huge benefit to the communities along it like Duakese, Gyato Chayo, Papaye, Motoka 1 and 2. Upgrading it to a bitumen surface has made it all-weather motorable and brought travelling time to a small fraction of what it was before construction began.