Govt clears $25m debt to Suame interchange contractor: Project to be completed 2027 - Roads Minister tells Asantehene

Government has paid all outstanding debts totalling $25 million owed to the contractor executing the Suame Interchange project, the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, has revealed.

He said the project stalled due to the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) since it was being funded by a domestic commercial loan, adding that the project had since been accommodated under the Big Push initiative.

“As I speak, all debt owed has been paid to the contractor. So, we expect the contractor to be fully mobilised on site and work to complete the project by the end of 2027,” he stated.

Courtesy call

Mr Agbodza made the remarks when he paid a courtesy call on the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, at the Manhyia Palace last Friday.

The visit was to brief the Asantehene on issues about the Suame interchange and the preparations being made ahead of the commencement of works on the Accra-Kumasi Expressway project.

Mr Agbodza further sought Otumfuo’s help to secure the cooperation of chiefs within affected communities and to seek his blessings.

The Roads and Highways Minister was accompanied by his deputy, Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini; the Deputy Minister of Defence, Ernest Brogya Genfi; the Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General William Agyapong and the Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, among others.

Mr Agbodza explained that the initial four-tier design had been changed to a three-tier design because of the development of other road infrastructure within the same environment, which altered the plan for a four-tier interchange.

For instance, he said, the government had begun the process to construct a 100-kilometre bypass or loop within the area, and indicated that if commuters did not have anything to do in the centre of Kumasi, they could use the ring road or bypass to go around Kumasi.

“We are constructing a bypass around Ejisu, and the expectation is that once it is completed, those going to Kumasi and do not intend to do anything in the town will not need to come and crowd around the Suame interchange,” he said.

Expressway project

On the government’s intended Accra-Kumasi Expressway project, Mr Agbodza said it was meant to provide road users with an alternative and faster travel route between the two biggest cities in the country.

Funded under the Big Push road infrastructure programme, he said the all-important project would improve connectivity between Accra and Kumasi while reducing travel time.

“If the project is completed, one should be able to drive from Accra to Kumasi in two hours. This will be a departure from the current six-hour journey between both cities,” he said.

Record time

Mr Agbodza stated that the route would not pass through communities, potentially ensuring completion and delivery of the project in record time, saying, “This will be a freeway which will reduce travel time along the corridor”.

He assured the Asantehene that construction of the Expressway would not affect the ongoing Accra-Kumasi road dualisation project, adding that the necessary funds had been allocated in the budget for its completion.

The Director of Engineering Services of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), Colonel Jonas Wiafe, said the military would play a key role in the initial phase by clearing the right of way within the designated area for the expressway project.

The exercise, which he said would be completed within 20 weeks, would cover a total of 80 kilometres within the Ashanti Region to pave the way for the actual construction to commence.

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II,  welcomed the project and said for almost 70 years, there had not been a newly constructed alternative route connecting Accra and Kumasi.

He mentioned that the existing road connecting the two cities was overstretched, resulting in portions being damaged from time to time, requiring continuous repair by successive governments.

While indicating that many advanced countries had alternative routes connecting many major cities, the Asantehene said: “It is good that the expressway will be tolled to enable the government to pay back the funds invested in the project”.

He further expressed hope that the project would be completed by 2028, and said, “When completed, I will also get the opportunity to travel on it to Accra and back without difficulty”.