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Rehabilitation works on the 31.2 km Assin Fosu – Assin Praso road in the Central Region is 65 per cent complete.
Expected to be completed by November next year, the project is being funded by the Japanese government at a cost of US$62.3 million.
It is the second phase of rehabilitation work on the national trunk (N8), which connects Cape Coast and Kumasi.
Inspecting progress of the work yesterday, Katsumura Akihisa, First Secretary for Development Cooperation, Japan Embassy in Ghana, said the project was under the Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda (GSGDA), which aims to enhance regional economic integration.
He explained that the Cape Coast to Kumasi road was a critical transportation route, hence the involvement of the Japanese government in its rehabilitation.
The entire 176km road, Mr Akihisa noted, was completed in 1994 through a Japan Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan.
However, he said due to rapid increase of traffic volume, the road condition has deteriorated, making the movement of goods and services within the adjoining regions difficult.
He stated that the rehabilitation would ensure enhanced economic activities and provide safe and uninterrupted transportation.
Mr Akihisa reiterated the commitment of the Japanese government to support Ghana’s development through infrastructure and other initiatives that would spur economic growth.
Project Manager, Tanimoto Masataka, said the first phase of the project was the rehabilitation of the 60km road between Assin Praso and Bekwai.
He said the second phase was delayed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that it would involve the dualisation of a 1.2km section of the road in the centre of Assin Fosu Township.
He noted that the project also entailed the reconstruction of a railway underpass bridge and drainage structures between Assin Fosu and Assin Praso.
He appealed to government to speed up efforts to rehabilitate other section of the road from Cape Coast to Assin Fosu to protect the integrity of the rehabilitated parts and enhance safe travels.
Nicholas Fiifi Baako, Chief Executive of the Assin Fosu Municipal Assembly, expressed gratitude to the Japanese government for the support and appealed for extension of the project to include a 500 metres section of the road.
Although the residents initially stood against demolition to pave way for the project, he said further
