GHA provides Akwamufie with alternative route to Juapong
The Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) is working on another road to link Akwamufie and its surrounding communities in the Asuogyaman District in the Eastern Region to the rest of the country.
Advertisement
The alternative road is the Akwamufie-Mpakadan road that links the Juapong-Apeguso-Nudu road.
Currently, there is only one motorable road that links Akwamufie and its environs, located along the Volta Lake, to the rest of the country.
This means that should anything happen to that road, all those communities will be cut off from the rest of the country.
Recall
On November 11, this year, a section of the Akwamufie road caved in as a result of an underground pipe leakage, cutting off communities in the area from the rest of the country.
Commuters on the day of the incident had two alternative routes to access Akwamufie and its adjoining communities — by water transport or a non-motorable road through Juapong.
To forestall a future occurrence, as well as permanently address the problem, the GHA engaged the chiefs and elders of Akwamufie on the need for an alternative route.
Alternative road
The Eastern Regional Director of the GHA, Mr Maama Sawyerr-Markwei, said the proposal was originally not easily acceptable to them, and that had a historical background.
Because of wars in the past, the people felt they were safe with only one road, as it was not easy for them to be attacked. They could see the attacker from a distance, he explained.
Work done
On work done so far, Mr Sawyerr-Markwei said two contractors were engaged to replace the leaking pipe, repair the caved-in section of the road and also open up the alternative road.
He said the contractor had cleared and opened up the road from Akwamufie to Mpakadan, adding that that bit of work was crucial in the event of another cut-off.
He said one other solution to safeguarding the Akwamufie road was for the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) to do thorough checks on that pipeline to ensure that other portions that were leaking were worked on.
In the long term, he said, the GHA was arranging with the GWCL to relocate the pipelines along the Akwamufie road to ensure the safety of the road.