RUKWA: RUKWA Region has recorded impressive efficiency in the improvement, maintenance, and development of roads for the last three years.
Tanzania Rural and Urban Roads Agency acting (TARURA) Regional Manager Engineer William Lameck said the achievements are due to a budget increase for the agency for three financial years (2020-2021 to 2023) from 5bn/- to 13bn/-.
“The budget is almost three times more than the 5bn/- allocated in the previous years,” he explained.
He further said that in the last financial year, the agency spent 13 bn/- to construct roads. The money came from the constituent development fund, road toll, road fund, and the government.
TARURA in Rukwa Region serves 2,307.26kms of road network with 80 bridges, 2,306 pipe culverts, 28 drifts, and 160 box culverts.
Also, the agency constructs 2.3 kms of tarmac roads each year in an effort to reduce earth roads. He made the revelation here when speaking on the success recorded by the agency in the region in three years of President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s leadership.
A cross-section of Rukwa residents who were interviewed separately by the “Daily News” echoed their joy since the move has addressed transport woes.
They further explained that as a result of the work carried out by TARURA, the residents of Rukwa Region remain grateful to the government for the construction of the roads in their areas as they previously encountered inconvenience because the infrastructure was impassable during the rainy season and caused hardship to the citizens.
Nkasi district resident, Ms. Christina Amos, said she was grateful to witness that the pledge made by the government to construct the roads has materialized.
A Sumbawanga Municipal resident, Mr. Jonas Mwale, said they are thankful to see Sumbawanga town with a tarmac road, which makes it have the same status as other cities.
He appealed to the town authorities to continue investing in improving the roads.
“We remain thankful to the government for rehabilitating road networks which now provide cheaper access to both markets and other social services, particularly in rural settings,” said Juma Abdallah, a trader from Matavi village in Kalambo district.
“We now witness markets in rural settings flourishing, also new traders and customers flock from distant villages, new vendors have settled in, and new shops are open,” he added.
On his part, Kalambo District Council Chairman, Mr. Daud Sichone, said the improvements have opened ways for the transportation of crops from the field to marketing centers.
He called upon the government to allocate more budgets for the district council to improve roads infrastructure that are in need of maintenance.
Tanzania is pushing ahead to improving rural transport, which plays an indispensable role in achieving more than half of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including alleviating poverty, ensuring food security, as well as achieving zero hunger.
The country is fulfilling the goals of the 2030 Agenda of SDGs of ‘leave no one on the side of the road or behind’.
“I ask citizens to continue protecting these roads along with other infrastructures so that they can last for a long time because their construction costs the government and taxpayers a lot of money,” stressed the Kalambo District Commissioner Mr. Lazaro Komba.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Sumbawanga District Commissioner Mr. Nyankia Cherukile. The Third National Five-Year Development Plan has also prioritized construction as one of the few fastest-growing sectors which contributes the largest share of GDP.
The plan focuses on strengthening and building basic infrastructure to stimulate economic activity through the provision of special development projects to local contractors, enhancing Skills Development, training, and capacity-building programs for local professionals (Contractors, Engineers, Architect, and Quantity Surveyors) among others.
Chama Cha Mapinduzi Election Manifesto 2020- 2025 also emphasizes the construction and repair of road infrastructure to enable the construction sector to attain its objectives of enabling citizens to continue with production activities to earn income.
The party directed the government to take various steps to attain the objective, among others, to strengthen the Roads Fund professional, systemic, and institutional capacity for TARURA to execute road maintenance activities.
