Sh53b West Nile project faces collapse
May 07, 2009
SEVERAL activities under the Northwest Small-holders Agricultural Development Project have stalled two months to its closure. The multi-million project is funded by the African Development Bank and the Uganda Government/
By Frank Mugabi
SEVERAL activities under the Northwest Small-holders Agricultural Development Project have stalled two months to its closure.
The newly-appointed agriculture state minister, Aggrey Bagiire, on Sunday conducted an assessment tour of the project and found that several programmes were incomplete and that the contractors had long abandoned the construction sites.
The minister discovered that the markets and bridges that had been earmarked for construction were incomplete and the access roads were only partially opened.
The roof for Keri Market, one of the projects, was incomplete and the no pit-latrines had been constructed.
Shocked, Bagiire said he would convene an urgent stakeholders meeting in Kampala to establish what went wrong and discuss how to salvage the project.
The multi-million project, funded by the African Development Bank and the Uganda Government, started in January 2001 and was scheduled to end in 2006.
It was, however, extended up to June 30 to allow for the completion of the programmes.
The $26.89 (about sh53b) programme was meant to bring about sustainable economic growth in the West Nile region through improved agricultural production and marketing. It covers Nebbi, Arua, Koboko, Yumbe, Moyo, Maracha/Terego and Adjumani districts.
Koboko assistant chief administrative officer Patrick Asendu blamed the delays on the contractors, whom he said lacked the capacity to carry out the work.
Asendu blamed Shepherds Service, who were awarded the tender to contruct Keri market, and Dahatse Engineering Services, who won the contract to open up Keri-Pamodo and Lurujo-Nyai roads, for failing to deliver. Other officials told the minister that Dahatse abandoned the work before completing.
They said the roads could not be used because heaps of murram were left in the middle of the roads.
Asendu the financiers had disbursed all the funds for the projects.
“Money is just lying on the account. We are supposed to pay the contractor for work done, but they have been unable to carry on with construction,†Asendu said.
He also lamented that they had found it hard to manage the contractors because they were selected from the project secretariat in Entebbe.
SEVERAL activities under the Northwest Small-holders Agricultural Development Project have stalled two months to its closure.
The newly-appointed agriculture state minister, Aggrey Bagiire, on Sunday conducted an assessment tour of the project and found that several programmes were incomplete and that the contractors had long abandoned the construction sites.
The minister discovered that the markets and bridges that had been earmarked for construction were incomplete and the access roads were only partially opened.
The roof for Keri Market, one of the projects, was incomplete and the no pit-latrines had been constructed.
Shocked, Bagiire said he would convene an urgent stakeholders meeting in Kampala to establish what went wrong and discuss how to salvage the project.
The multi-million project, funded by the African Development Bank and the Uganda Government, started in January 2001 and was scheduled to end in 2006.
It was, however, extended up to June 30 to allow for the completion of the programmes.
The $26.89 (about sh53b) programme was meant to bring about sustainable economic growth in the West Nile region through improved agricultural production and marketing. It covers Nebbi, Arua, Koboko, Yumbe, Moyo, Maracha/Terego and Adjumani districts.
Koboko assistant chief administrative officer Patrick Asendu blamed the delays on the contractors, whom he said lacked the capacity to carry out the work.
Asendu blamed Shepherds Service, who were awarded the tender to contruct Keri market, and Dahatse Engineering Services, who won the contract to open up Keri-Pamodo and Lurujo-Nyai roads, for failing to deliver. Other officials told the minister that Dahatse abandoned the work before completing.
They said the roads could not be used because heaps of murram were left in the middle of the roads.
Asendu the financiers had disbursed all the funds for the projects.
“Money is just lying on the account. We are supposed to pay the contractor for work done, but they have been unable to carry on with construction,†Asendu said.
He also lamented that they had found it hard to manage the contractors because they were selected from the project secretariat in Entebbe.