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Add to Preferred SourcesThe United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the European Union have officially handed over the completed Kwacjok Bridge to the Government of South Sudan that links Lunyaker, Kwacjok and Kangi regions for long separated by the Jur River.
The 120-metre long bridge is part of a €20.3 million (US$ 24.8 million) European Union-funded project to construct and maintain a total 100 kilometres of road infrastructure in Warrap and Western Bahr el Ghazal states.
Built at a total cost of US$6.5 million, the bridge will connect tens of thousands of people and is key not only for humanitarian operations but is expected to boost farm-to-market access and commercial activities in the region as well.
“The project is more than just a bridge,” says Rebecca Okwaci, Minister of Roads and Bridges. “This is an investment in various sectors of South Sudan including education, agriculture, health, transport and tourism.”
“This bridge is part of a larger infrastructure investment programme which has been continuously supported by the European Union, since 2012, with a significant financial contribution of over €58 million,” says EU Ambassador to South Sudan Dr Sinead Walsh.
South Sudan has a road network of over 20,000 kilometers, but only 200 kilometers is paved. Decades of conflict and years of neglect have stunted infrastructure development in the country. Road travel is, therefore, difficult with 60 percent of the country inaccessible during the six-month-long rainy season from June to November every year.
“The project will transform the dynamics of transportation in surrounding communities and counties,” says Ronald Sibanda, WFP’s Country Director in South Sudan. “As well as improving the movement of goods and people, the bridge lays a strong foundation for the socio-economic growth of the region by facilitating regional trade and community integration across the river.”
The Kwacjok Bridge is the latest WFP engineering project in South Sudan. Since 2013, WFP has completed the construction and upgrade of more than 500 kilometres of roads and built 30 structures including culverts and bridges across Central, Eastern and Western Equatoria, Warrap and Western Bahr el Gazal.
Original source: WFP
Published on 04 June 2019