Infrastructure and Housing Minister Vincent Mwale has challenged Engineers in Zambia to work together to bring down the cost of constructing roads in Zambia.
Mr Mwale said Government thinks that Zambian roads are expensive and that stakeholders must work to bring the cost down.
He was speaking when he met officials from the Engineering Institution of Zambia, Association for Consulting Engineers of Zambia and the Road Development Agency.
He pointed out that the Ministry would prioritise the search for solutions to the problem of infrastructure projects that, are on average, more costly than comparable projects elsewhere.
Mr Mwale cited the construction of roads and schools in Zambia as too expensive and challenged EIZ to identify the problem and recommend solutions.
He assured EIZ of the support of the Ministry and the constant consultation with the Institution in searching for solutions.
On payment of Zambian suppliers, Zambia contractors and Zambian consultants, Mr Mwale pledges that his Ministry would be sensitive, committed and transparent to source money and clear arrears.
He however, acknowledged that liquidity was a challenge because government had contracted a lot of projects and the problem of high costs had constrained the Treasury’s capacity to pay stakeholders on time.
As regards construction materials, Mr Mwale challenged EIZ to promote local materials, including steel, cement, paints and chemicals and discourage contractors from importing expensive materials from abroad, consequently denying local manufacturers from benefiting from the infrastructure growth.
On the hosting of the Africa Engineering Conference, Mr. Mwale pledged to promote the event and encourage all stakeholders from Government and the private sector to attend this important event.
He said it was the priority of government to encourage knowledge sharing, common resolution of problems and the presence of participants from abroad was good for tourism.
And in response, EIZ President Sydney Matamwandi who led his delegation assured Mr. Mwale that the Institution would engage members and come up with problem identification as to why projects, especially are too costly in Zambia and make tangible proposals to be presented to the Minister.
Mr Matamwandi thanked Mr Mwale for an early invitation of the Institution to see him as he begins a new tour of duty.
What is EIZ doing to address this issue of nonpayments of local contractors for over one year period?
This is what Zambian are good at. Wearing suits and talking BS
It’s corruption, LOOTING and mismanagement that’s all. Indeed how can one kilometer of a road cost $1m?
Economy is tough, everybody is bold headed, no money to barbershops for table-cuts. Just have to shave every morning using Tatra razor blades.
Engineers in Zambia insist on using asphalt roads. When President Lungu commissioned the Dangote Cement plant he called RDA to start constructing concrete roads. He said government has traditionally relied on costly bitumen for the construction of roads. All the road materials are locally available and would result in huge savings in forex. In Nigeria Dangote is popularizing the use of concrete roads and said: “A concrete road lasts longer than asphalt roads and does not have potholes. It does not require frequent maintenance as do asphalt roads. It saves fuel for motorists and protects tyres from wear and tear. “It is part of the Group’s determination to support government and Nigerians to grow the economy and facilitate ease of doing business.”
I vaguely remember the former boss of RDA attributing the high cost of roads because of imported bitumen as a result of Zambia’s high transportation cost being a land locked country.
Take those black mountains, use the stuff on roads. Mines produce alot of rocks and shiit, make a deal with them to dump on roads. The mines will be happy to do that.
The government is asking why road contracts are laced with kickbacks schemed by government officials and wants the EIZ to do something about it because the government has no evidence.
Its the Ministry of Finance that pays contractors and not the engineers. Contractors have resorted to inflating contracts to survive long periods without payments
Dear comrades.
You can not bring down cost of roads politically because at the end of the day an engineer will be blamed for specifying a cheap road
Bitumen is imported. The machinery you see is NOT owned by contractor. Its hired.
How does an engineer make road works cheap.
I sometime wonder whether there is “akalilo” in constructing asphalt roads using imported bitumen. Yes concrete roads would have not been possible under Larfage because the price of cement was sky rocketing and would have been well over K100 had it continued to be the sole supplier.
There was a proposal in a graft constitution to pick ministers out side parliament but don’t know how it was thrown out
Mp is political post. Cabinet minister should be someone qualified in the Ministry he is heading
Vincent Mwale including those Engineers attending this meeting know that the cost of roads and other GRZ construction projects is HIGH partly if not mainly DUE TO CORRUPTION from the highest to the lowest levels of actors in the sector! HEARTLESS,SHAMELESS FOR A MINISTER TO EVEN TALK ABOUT IT,LET HIM FIRST CONDUCT AN AUDIT ON SOME CONTROVERSIAL PROJECTS,PROSECUTE CULPRITS,THEN WE SHALL TRUST HIM!!
100% TRUE, ZAMBIA IS OURS!
These Cadre politicians know why Zambian roads are most dear on the planet, BUT wont tell us the truth, as they know Jona Chakolwa is the No 1 enabler of these Corrupt practices, always overinflating & creaming the top off road & other government contracts.
We all know Jona uses his thieving enforcer Ronald Kitolela for the creaming, & illegal laundering , as Jona is busy drinking, dancing Kanselele, & always airborne, & forever avoiding ba Mama Esther ku Plot No1.
Anyone who dares expose the Alpha & Omega of Ubomba Mwibala, & his Corrupt + money laundering schemes will be retired in national interest, & the extended Belly will shrink pronto!!
Well said #4 and #4.1
We have engineers who can not even build roads,sure were on Earth kwena tusebuleniko isoni.RDA wake up and position yourselves.It’s time you have to do your work.
Mwakuta manje? Or u now scared of FIC Report????
So these engineers don’t know the cost of 1KM.Theories in govt.Fire them if it’s possible or revoke the licenses
In the Daily Mail of 15th March, 2015, the then RDA director and CEO Mr. Chiwala attributed the high cost of road construction in Zambia due to dependency on imported raw materials when he appeared on ZNBC. He said costly road construction equipment was imported. The roads in the country are put up at a huge cost and importing bitumen from Durban in South Africa involves spending a lot of money on transportation and it becomes worse with a weak Kwacha. He said RDA is counting on Indeni Petroleum Refinery in Ndola to expedite construction of a bitumen plant to reduce the cost of bitumen. But isn’t bitumen a byproduct of oil which is also imported? CONCRETE ROADS ARE THE WAY FORWARD with local cement, aggregate and water.
Even if concrete roads were expensive, which they are not, this could be offset by their longevity.The biggest benefit of concrete road construction is the longevity. Lasting 20-40 years on average, paving in concrete can boast two to four times the lifespan of asphalt.
Oil pipeline to Angola, Bitumen plant in Ndola at Indeni, Dangote type roads, as Senior Engineer”( RTD )”has stated would have solved a lot of Zambia’s problems. President Lungu has some great ideas sometimes, but the nonsense that is most of his ministers is the problem.
Necessity is the mother of invention, and who on earth has more necessity than the peoples of Africa? We must put our minds to work and think of new ways of solving problems. The days of buying solutions from the west must pass, and we must keep in mind the attitude of “Yes we can.”