Governor Amos Nyaribo has flagged off assorted road construction machines to start construction of county 400 kilometers of marram roads in the Nyamira County in a bid to improve transport and communication.
Speaking during the exercise, Nyaribo stated that he was excited not just to witness but to preside over a remarkable milestone his county had achieved since the inception of devolution.
“Previously we partnered with the Mechanical Transport Fund (MTF) in Nairobi through contractual agreements but due to the high cost of road construction and maintenance, we could not sustain the programme,” he said.
“After consultations, my administration, together with the county assembly, agreed that we had to invest in procuring equipment in this financial year to construct our roads in a more efficient and affordable manner.”
Dubbed ‘barabara Mashinani’ the budgetary allocation for the programme stood at Sh341 million to cover for the procurement of equipment, production and administration costs.
He said projected to construct 400kilometers of roads in 2024/2025 financial complete with adequate drainage structures.
This translates to 20 kilometers of road construction in each ward saying five kilometers of road will be new.
“Barabara Mashinani programme will be facilitated by 16 assorted machinery and equipment which include, excavators, graders, rollers, tippers and bull dozers among others.
“We have, at the same time, put in place a project management team that will oversee the implementation of the programme envisioned to take 12 months. They will submit a quarterly report to the county assembly for scrutiny and further recommendations as an oversighting body,” Nyaribo said.
Nyaribo confirmed that the machinery will be moved from one constituency to the other until all the projected roads are constructed subject to amendments as would be suggested by members of the public in public barazas.
Nyamira County commissioner, Erastus Mbui, lauded the Governor’s initiative saying good road networks stimulated the economy by enabling easy access to rural areas where businesses and farming thrived.
“Improvement of these roads and construction of new ones will go a long way in enhancing transport and communication even to national government officers who equally offer services to citizens to the remote parts of these counties. I challenge you, as responsible citizens, to ensure that quality work is done. No one should attempt to stop or interfere with these development projects,” Mbui said.
Nyamira County Assembly Speaker, Thadius Nyabaro said he was delighted to see what they debated about for long, and reached a consensus as the county assembly, has been executed.
Nyabaro said the Assembly was committed and keen to closely assess the road construction projects to ensure that the county got value for its money.
By Deborah Bochere