The Ministry of Roads and Highways, through the Ghana Highway Authority, has announced the commissioning of the completed 56.4km Hohoe-Jasikan–Dodo Pepesu road project.
The Hohoe–Jasikan–Dodo Pepesu Road (56.4km) forms part of the Eastern Corridor Road network that links the Southern part of the country to the Northern part and other neighbouring countries.
This road also forms part of the National Road, N2 of the Ghana Highway Authority Road Classification System.
H.E the Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, performed the official commissioning ceremony in Kadjebi, to formally hand over that section of the road to the travelling public.
In his keynote address, he expressed government’s commitment to delivering similar trunk road networks across the country as part of government’s ‘Year of Roads programme’.
The US$ 45,335,208.43 contract, awarded to Messrs Sinohydro Corporation Limited in August 2018, commenced on 19th December 2020 for a 30-month duration period. However, thorough assessment of the road facility by the engineering team led to re-scoping of works for the construction of the 56.4km road.
This rescoping led to gains in the project cost for the road construction, and these gains enabled the engineers to replace the initial triple surface dressing with asphaltic surface.
The contractor, therefore, completed all works under the contract ahead of schedule and final inspection and taking over was done on Thursday,21st April 2022.
The road traverses two (2) districts, namely, the Jasikan District Assembly in the Volta Region and Kadjebi District Assembly in the Oti Region. It also links Togo at a town called Menuso.
Most of the people along the corridor are farmers who are engaged in the production of staples.
The area’s major economic activities are in the production of cocoa and ginger. Another major economic activity of towns along the project road is trading. The area is also rich in lumber production.
The project road serves as a major yam route from the Northern Region to the southern part of Ghana. However, years of neglect resulted in the deplorable condition of the road and economic activities got disrupted, especially during the rainy season when the road becomes hardly motorable, especially between Jasikan and Kadjebi, which is mostly on embankments, making that section very dangerous.
Most sections were riddled with potholes and sectional deterioration with shoving and cracks, which required prompt attention. This resulted in high vehicle operation cost and increased travel time for traversing the road from Jasikan to Dodo Pepesu, Nkwanta and beyond.
Several attempts to reconstruct the road failed in the past, and perennial maintenance activities did not help either.
As a result of this, the project road was awarded on contract for the construction of the entire 56.4km to help improve the socio-economic lives of the people and enhance the work of the newly created Oti Region and Districts by improving communications among them.
SCOPE OF WORKS
The works under this project for the first 17km were intended to improve the road by placing 200mm subbase, 200mm crushed rock base, triple surface treatment (primer seal, double surface dressing), and placing of 50 mm asphalt cover.
The rest of the 39.4km consisted of rehabilitation of the road, including the following:
Re-engineering of the vertical and horizontal alignments of sections of the road to improve sight distance and enhance the overall safety of the road;
1. Widening of the carriageway to the National road width of 12.3m including 2.5m shoulders on both sides;
2. Extension of the existing culverts to cater for the widening of the road, and construction of new culverts of various sizes to improve the drainage conditions along the road;
3. Construction of 2,600m u-drains of varying sizes in the communities along the route and 9,356m trapezoidal drains of varying sizes in towns and at the foot of cut sections and on high gradients.
4. Overlay with 40mm wearing course and 40 mm binder course.
5. Provision of road furniture and safety features.
At the ceremony to grace the occasion was the Chinese Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana H.E Lu Kun, the Oti Regional Minister, Hon Dr. Joshua Makubu; Hon. Kwasi Amoako- Attah(MP) and Minister for Roads and Highways, Officials of the Roads Ministry and Agency heads under the Ministry plus eminent traditional leaders and other invited guests.