Drive to improve and develop road infrastructure
A five-year program aims to transform the network—but funds and investment are needed

One of the surest signs of recovery and renewed confidence in the future of Sierra Leone is the rate of rebuilding and regeneration to be seen. Work is going on all over Freetown, where new law courts have just opened, the sports stadium has been completely refurbished, the international airport has been modernized, and hospitals, housing and roads are being built.

CAISER BOIMA Minister of Works, Housing and Technical Maintenance

Carrying around 80 percent of the country’s internal passenger and cargo traffic, the road network has a fundamental role to play in Sierra Leone’s economic recovery—and in the restoration of civil authority and provision of health, education and sanitation services. Much of it is in a sorry state due to deterioration during the civil war.
Caiser Boima, Minister of Works, Housing and Technical Maintenance, says, “The most important function we have as a ministry is to rehabilitate the roads. This will have a major impact on our economy and give people confidence that the long-awaited peace is really here.”

Private investment is encouraged in both maintenance and construction

This puts a considerable responsibility on the Sierra Leone Roads Authority (SLRA), which is responsible for managing the network and for overseeing a major five-year investment plan for 2003-2007. Significant participation by the private sector will be crucial to the plan’s success.

ADOLPHUS JACKSON Deputy Director General of Sierra Leone Roads Authority

“We have set ourselves a timeframe of five years. We hope that within that period we will rehabilitate about 7,000 kilometers of roads and most of the trunk roads will be rehabilitated and reconstructed,” says Adolphus Jackson, the SLRA’s Deputy Director General.
Primary routes are to be improved to provide all-weather access to the most economically productive parts of the country—in particular, the agricultural and mining areas in the east.

The main challenge the SLRA faces is how to generate enough financial resources to pay for the program. The cost of the rehabilitation and reconstruction of primary, secondary and feeder roads, is estimated at $277 million.
External funding is being provided for all major improvements by the World Bank, the European Union and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development. Commitments have been made for $112 million.

Maintenance work is estimated at $50 million

“We are still looking for financial assistance to pay for the rest,” says Mr. Jackson.
The huge backlog of maintenance work— programmed over the five-year period at a total cost of $50 million—is being financed through a road fund based on charges on the price of fuel and on fees for vehicle and driver licensing and registration. For this too, however, additional revenue needs to be found.

“We are encouraging private investment in both maintenance and construction,” says Mr. Jackson. “In fact, private contractors are now carrying out most of our operations. There are a lot of incentives for them to invest in infrastructure and development.”
The SLRA’s semi-autonomous equipment department, the Mechanical Services Unit (MSU), is likely to be privatized in the next two to three years. “Our objective is merely to manage the road network and not to execute works. All of these we will have to pass over to the private sector,” says Mr. Jackson.