“I don’t provide the funds” -Asenso Boakye expresses funding uncertainties for PTC Interchange
Minister of Roads, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has stated his inability to provide timelines for the completion of the stalled PTC Interchange project in Takoradi as there are funding uncertainties surrounding the project.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the interchange, which aimed to alleviate traffic congestion in the area, took place in September 2020, but construction only commenced ten months later after several demonstrations.
Initially slated for completion in the second quarter of 2023, the project has been on hold for nearly a year and a half. The Sino-Hydro contractors left the site on January 15, 2023, due to the withdrawal of creditor support amid IMF negotiations.
The abandoned project site has now become overgrown and deteriorating, causing inconvenience to motorists and residents. Reports of theft of construction parts by thieves have added to the project’s woes.
Mr. Asenso-Boakye, along with the Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah and other officials, visited the site to assess the situation. While expressing sympathy for the affected residents, he mentioned plans for temporary works at the site but refrained from providing a timeline for these works or the resumption of the major interchange project.
He emphasized the government’s efforts to secure necessary funding and proposed subcontracting parts of the project to different contractors with new funding to address immediate concerns and reduce inconvenience to residents. However, he did not specify when these interventions would commence.
“Government recognises that it is a major issue and we have been working feverishly with our creditors so that we can arrange the necessary funding. That notwithstanding, I’m aware of the concern of residents here in Sekondi-Takoradi about the inconvenience that this construction has brought to them and as a result, we are taking a decision to make sure that a part of the contract is taken out from the main contract with the Sino-Hydro contractors given to a different contractor with new funding to complete some minimal interventions on the ground here to reduce the inconvenience”.
When pressed for a timeline, Minister Asenso-Boakye reiterated the funding challenge, stating that he would engage with the Finance Ministry once designs and estimates are available. He emphasized his commitment to the project but cautioned against fixating on timelines, emphasizing the importance of addressing the funding issue first.
“I’m the Roads Minister but I don’t provide the funds so once I get the designs and the estimates, I will engage the Finance Ministry to raise the necessary funding…the most important thing is my commitment and I don’t want this interview to be a subject of timelines. That is not healthy.”
In addition to the PTC Interchange project, the Minister also inspected other road projects, including the dualization of the Sekondi to Takoradi road, and assessed the poor conditions of roads in the Shama District and the Takoradi to Agona Nkwanta road.
