By Yunus S Saliiu
The Ministry of Transport, Works and Infrastructure with other stakeholders yesterday, Tuesday, 14th January 2025 officially signed the contract for the construction of the Phase III of the Bertil Harding Highways. The signing of the contract was presided over by Honourable Minister Ebrima Sillah.
The signing ceremony held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Centre, Bijilo brought together different Ministers from different ministries, permanent secretaries, DPSs, contractors, , official of the MOTWI, NRA, National Assembly Member, Arezki and other relevant stakeholders.
In his address before the official signing of the contract, Honourable Ebrima Sillah, Minister of Transport, Works and Infrastructure applauded stakeholders for their support.
With the completion of Phase, I and II of the construction of the Bertil Harding Highway, he disclosed that everyone is celebrating the hard work that had gone into the building which is now awaiting the official inauguration, “hopefully in February” 2025 while happy while Phase III is starting in earnest to compliment the tremendous efforts that went into doing the previous two phases.
Minister expressed gratitude for the support received from His Excellency, President Adama Barrow, “who has constantly shown interest in this Bertil Harding Highways from the beginning of the negotiation.”
Notwithstanding, he used the opportunity also to thank critical partners like the Ministries of Finance, Justice, Land, Tourism, Arts and Culture, and Youth and Sports, and all “other critical ministries that have been working with us in negotiating for the loan, and also the land acquisition process, the legal advisers and also the preservation of key and important tourism landmarks on this corridor. Also, the NRA has been at the forefront of monitoring and ensuring that the standards are adhered to by the contractor and also my technical team, led by the permanent secretary for the sleepless nights that we have been giving them in ensuring that these two phases were completed on time and budget.”
The Minister disclosed that its Ministry is on the verge of finalizing arrangements for the signing of the Sting Corner, Mandinaba Bypass roads “which is also going to be a modern edifice with dual carriage,” with different facilities “and we look forward to working with all of you again, in supporting us, in advising us, but also accompanying us in the implementation of that very important project.”
Minister Sillah noted that currently, the ministry, through support from the entire government structure, is overseeing nearly 500 kilometers of active road construction across the country, he therefore, thanked his entire staff and team for their support and loyalty for this matter.
Tarek Arezki, the Chief Executive Officer of Arezki Construction Company, a contractor for the construction of the 22 Km Bertil Harding Highway, expressed gratitude and said the Phase III work will comprise a new bridge at the SukutaJunction, a parallel road to the highway to connect all the people around the area and “this will improve the movement of the traffic.”
In addition, there will be lights in places for pedestrians to use at night, and a beautification camera system (CCTV) to improve the safety and security of the road together with the users, and it is a two-year project.
He mentioned that work will start as soon as possible thus they are having 70 percent of some of the materials for the work ready.
The Managing Director of the National Road Authority (NRA), Ousman Sanyang described the signing as an important milestone for Bertill Harding Highway, saying it is not just only for the highway providing connectivity and access within the Greater Banjul Area, but “nationally a very significant infrastructure project and one of the most ones we’ve got now in terms of significance and biggest project we’ve got in The Gambia.”
However, the Managing Director dilated on the continuity of the contract, monitoring, the quality of the contractor’s work, and facilities that Phase III comprises among other critical things to the construction, while also noting the government of the Gambia and Islamic Development Bank significant contributions towards the project.
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Honourable Bakary Badjie, Aliue Loum, Deputy Chief of Staff and Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Civil Service, Baboucarr Jobe, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Economy Affairs among others made remarkable speeches at the signing ceremony.
The Permanent Secretary of MOTWI, Matar Ceesay, gave opening remarks for the commencement of the ceremony, noting that Phases I and II had an important impact on both the connectivity and promoting the economy of this country, and improving the travel time, and promoted connectivity and trade.