Innovation Award for Road Transport in Developing Countries (InARoaD)

PROJECT PROPOSAL (2012)

NAME OF PROJECT: � Delegated Forced Account Agreement N0. 067/CRD/MINTP between the Ministry of

Public Works (MINTP) and the South-West Development Authority (SOWEDA) for the rehabilitation of the ASHONG-MBECHO rural road (13 km) in LEBIALEM Division, and the Sensitisation and Training of the Beneficiary Communities on the “New Strategy for the Rehabilitation and Maintenance of Rural Roads” in CAMEROON.

SUBMISSION CATEGORY:

� Rural Transport CONTACT INFORMATION OF APPLICANT:

� Chief TAMBE John BITA � Regional Sub-Director of Roads for the South-West � Regional Delegation of Public Works, LIMBE � Republic of CAMEROON

� Tel: 699 98 62 56 � Email: btambe2002@yahoo.co.uk

A 100 WORD EXPLANATION OF HOW THE PROJECT MEETS THE CRITERIA OF RURAL TRANSPORT UNDER WHICH IT HAS BEEN SUBMITTED:

� Project carried out in CAMEROON (Central AFRICA);

� Executed by SOWEDA (State-owned Corporation) and handed over to the Administration on the 5th of May 2011;

� Measurable Results:

� travel time = greatly reduced;

� transport fares = significantly dropped;

� many job opportunities = for youths of the beneficiary communities under the “Labour-Intensive Techniques” option.

� Improvement in RURAL TRANSPORT:

� vehicle operating costs = ameliorated;

� greater accessibility = to health infrastructure, schools, urban markets;

� more persons = now ply this road per given period of time.

� Project is Replicable:

� Cameroon Development Corporation has recently applied to the Minister of Public Works for a similar Partnership Agreement.

� Does not advertise a lucrative business or product

� this is a Trial Strategy.

� Major Problem Encountered:

� late start-off because of modalities of safe-guarding the state funding.

A 500 WORD SUMMARY DESCRIBING THE SCOPE AND CONTENT OF THE PROJECT:

� SCOPE:

� this is a mutually beneficial Partnership Agreement whereby the Government awards road maintenance/rehabilitation contracts to State-owned Corporations for lesser Unit Prices, hence the global contract amount is about 30% - 40% cheaper than the same contract when awarded to a Small & Medium sized road construction company.

� this is true because these State-owned Corporations are equipped with some heavy-duty equipment pool furnished by the State, therefore, no hiring costs are included in the Jobbing Order of the Bill of Quantities. Their Technical Departments are managed by qualified technical personnel.

� these Technical Personnel involved in the execution of such contracts only receive Output Allowances (which are far smaller than Wages) because they are first of all Staff of these State-owned Corporations, and consequently entitled to receive their normal monthly Salaries.

� therefore, the bulk of the contract budget allocated goes in for the purchase of Fuel/Lubricants, Spare Parts, Construction Materials and only a small percentage actually goes in for the payment of personnel allowances.

� CONTENT:

� the South-West Development Authority (SOWEDA) was created by Decree No 87/1874 of 17 December 1987, with its mission inter alia to transform the highly remote socio-economic environment of the South West Region by creating, rehabilitating and maintaining a network of “farm-to-market roads” adjacent to its agricultural land base, as well as, executing other rural development infrastructural works.

� on the 5th of May 2011, SOWEDA handed over to the Ministry of Public Works, 13 km of the rehabilitated ASHONG-MBECHO road in Lebialem Division, within the framework of the Delegated Forced Account Agreement N0. 067/CRD/MINTP between the Ministry of Public Works and SOWEDA.

� the total amount of the Partnership Agreement was 350 000 000 FCFA to be used for the following activities:

� Socio-economic/Technical study of the Beneficiary Communities; � Sensitisation of Administrative, Municipal, Traditional and Religious

authorities, as well as the Beneficiary Communities, before and during execution of works;

� Creation, Training and Legalisation of Road Management Committees; � Execution of Rehabilitation works by SOWEDA under the supervision

of the State, using Labour-Intensive Techniques as much as possible; � Post-rehabilitation routine maintenance by the legalised Road

Maintenance Committees; � Reception and Handing-over Ceremony.

� in order to enable the populations along the road to adhere to the Government

policies of Post-rehabilitation routine maintenance, sensitisation campaigns were organised per Community. Reasons being that Community structures, habits, attitudes and characteristics differ from one community to another.

� the methodology adopted for the sensitisation workshops made use of the following methods for easy comprehension: Lectures, Flip Charts, Group discussions, Cards for Visualisation, Plenary discussions, PowerPoint Presentations, Brainstorming, Role Play, Questions and Answers.

� a total of six (06) Road Maintenance Committees were created and legalised in the following villages along the road stretch: (KON, NJEN, BAHNE, DIH, BANTENG & MBECHO), and some light hand tools were distributed to them on the day of handing-over of the rehabilitated road to the Administration.