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Tamale interchange opens

Tamale interchange opens

The two-tier Tamale Interchange, the first to be constructed in the northern part of the country, has been opened to traffic, three months ahead of schedule.

The structure, which has been dedicated to
the memory of Naa Gbewaa, the Founder of the
Mole/Dagbon Kingdom, is expected to ease
traffic congestion and give a facelift to the
metropolis.
The project was financed under the Master
Project Support Agreement (MPSA) between the
government and the Sinohydro Corporation
Company of China.
The Naa Gbewaa Interchange links the road
from the Dakpema Palace through the ‘Point 7’
road, the Central Taxi Rank and the Central
Market Intersection to the Sakasaka Road.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo,
who inaugurated the project yesterday, said the
facility formed part of the government’s
commitment to address congestion in urban
centres and also help improve travel times on
major arterial roads.
He said the Sinohydro facility was the fruit
of the good bilateral relations between Ghana
and China, adding that the innovative
agreement, the first of its kind in the subregion,
would not be added to the nation’s debt
stock.
“Under phase one of the Sinohydro project,
a total of 441 kilometres (km) of roads and two
interchanges have been constructed. I am
happy to announce that most of the projects are
at various stages of completion,” he said.
The President said phase two of the
Obetsebi-Lamptey Interchange in Accra, the
PTC Roundabout Interchange in Takoradi, the
Nungua Interchange, the Agyirigano Overpass
and the Flower Pot Interchange, all in Accra,
were at various stages of completion.
Critical road infrastructure
Apart from the interchanges, he indicated
that the government was also undertaking
critical road projects to improve urban mobility
across the country, which would reduce travel
times on the highways.
They included 1,200km asphalt overlay roads
across all the regions in the country, he
indicated.
The President added that the Ministry of
Roads and Highways had programmed to
complete 1,500km of asphalt overlay roads
between 2021 and 2022 and rehabilitate the 160-
km Yendi-Tamale highway and the Yendi-
Zabzugu road, rehabilitate 670km of feeder roads
in the Upper West Region and reconstruct
phase one of the Tamale-Walewale road, which
would improve the section between Savelugu
and Tamale.
Year of roads
For his part, the Overlord of Dagbon, Ya-Na
Abukari II, in a speech read on his behalf, said
the massive road infrastructure witnessed in
the region gave real meaning to the
government’s declaration of 2021 and 2022 as
years of roads.
He said the construction of the interchange
was laudable, as it would ease congestion,
improve traffic flow within the central business
district and enhance the living conditions of
the people.
The Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji
Shani Alhassan, commended the government
for initiating the project, which, he explained,
had completely transformed the landscape of
the Tamale metropolis.
He expressed his commitment to monitor
the use of the facility and carry out the required
decongestion exercise to clear off hawkers from
trading along the edifice.
Dignitaries
Among the dignitaries who graced the
occasion were the Vice-President, Dr
Mahamudu Bawumia; the Minister of Tourism,
Arts and Culture, Dr Mohammed Awal; the
Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Lu Kun, chiefs
and officials of the Sinohydro Corporation.
Background
On April 10, 2019, President Akufo-Addo cut
the sod for the construction of the Tamale
Interchange.
The project was the first of 10 lots to
commence under the $2 billion Ghana–
Sinohydro Master Project Support Agreement
between Ghana and China.
The interchange is part of a 1.7-km road,
ramps, drainage works, streetlights and 10km of
asphalt overlay around the interchange.

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