WORKS deputy minister Sankwasa James Sankwasa has bemoaned the skyrocketing costs of road construction in the country, and promised that his ministry will table the construction industry bill in parliament later this year.
Speaking while officiating at the inauguration of a gravel district road (DR) 3681 from Epato via Otamanzi to the Onaushe settlement in the Omusati region on Thursday, Sankwasa said Namibia does not have construction industry control legislation in place to control the industry.
He believes the time has come when Namibians must interrogate the current skyrocketing costs of road construction works.
“Some eight to 10 years ago, road construction to bitumen standard cost around N$3 million to N$4 million per kilometre (km), and gravel road construction ranged between N$1 million and N$2 million per km. But today, we stand at around N$20 to N$30 million per kilometre,” Sankwasa stated.
He added that in specific instances, the costs are being estimated at over N$40 million per km, which he stressed is not sustainable to a country with vast geographical distances like Namibia.
The politician also demanded to know how many roads shall be constructed in the country if such a trend continues, and the costs of road and building construction work in other SADC countries and beyond.
He thus wants Namibians to exercise patriotism, and to ensure that resources made available to the Ministry of Works and Transport by both government and other sources are used efficiently for proper service delivery, and to avoid unnecessary wastage.
Sankwasa at the same time encouraged contractors to construct quality roads and other construction work which are completed within the specified budgets and set time periods.
“I am and will remain a big advocate for ensuring that we get value for money on our construction projects,” he stated.
The construction of the 36,6km Epato-Otamanzi-Onaushe DR 3681 road spanned over 24 months at a cost of N$63,9 million, and was co-financed by the Namibian government and Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (KfW) of Germany.
– Nampa
