A GNA feature by Fatima Anafu-Astanga, GNA
Bolgatanga, Nov. 14, GNA – One of the flagship initiatives of the current government is the ambitious road infrastructure programme dubbed “Big Push,” aimed at improving transportation, enhancing road safety, promoting trade and creating jobs.
A key objective of the programme is to connect communities, towns and regions to essential services and economic opportunities through an improved and efficient road network.
Over the years, Ghana’s road sector has faced persistent challenges, particularly poor maintenance, which has contributed to the deterioration of major roads.
This has resulted in economic losses, road crashes, increased transportation costs, and other health and safety risks.
Improved road infrastructure is, therefore, critical to national development.
However, the success of the government’s flagship Big Push programme will depend not only on the estimated US$10 billion investment in road infrastructure but also on effective planning, adequate supplies of construction materials and timely cash flow to contractors.
The programme seeks to accelerate road infrastructure development, while ensuring the completion of abandoned and uncompleted government projects across various sectors.
While these are laudable objectives, a critical question remains: are the supporting sectors adequately equipped to provide the materials and services required to achieve these ambitions?
Although several factors could account for delays in project implementation, one major concern is the dwindling capacity of local quarry operators and the limited availability of construction materials.
This has created supply gaps, particularly in crushed stones, aggregates, and chippings, which are essential for road construction.
Existing quarry investments in Ghana
Among the existing quarry investments is the Upper Quarry in the Upper East Region, which stretches from Pwalugu towards Tongo in the Talensi District.
The quarry was established in 1980 and commenced commercial operations in 1993.
Over the years, several government projects in the northern sector have relied on the Upper Quarry and borrowed pits for construction materials.
However, the quarry industry continues to face challenges, partly because some operators have not upgraded or replaced their machinery for several years.
Although competition in the stone and chippings supply industry has increased, including the entry of Chinese investors, some operators continue to struggle because of the high cost of acquiring specialised machinery required for different stages of quarry operations.
Available geological information indicates that the major rock outcrop at Pwalugu consists of muscovite-biotite granite, characterised by silvery or copper-silver and black mineral components.
The granite can be used as dimension stone, although its application in the area is limited because of the high cost of processing it into finished products.
Other materials include crushed and broken stones, which are processed into chippings used mainly for road surfacing, as essential raw materials in the construction industry and others using it for terrazzo works.
The quarry sector, therefore, requires substantial investment to improve production capacity and meet growing demand.
With the implementation of the Big Push projects in the northern sector, quarry materials are also facing increasing competition from customers in the building and construction industry.
The shortage of these materials, coupled with the long distances contractors sometimes must travel to obtain them, creates supply gaps at construction sites.
Additionally, when demand exceeds supply, contractors may experience delays in obtaining the required quantities and grades of aggregates.
Such delays can have serious implications for project delivery schedules, increase operational costs, and make it difficult for contractors to meet contractual deadlines.
Smaller construction firms involved in the projects can be particularly affected because of their limited financial capacity to purchase and stockpile materials in advance, which undermines their operations and ultimately, the programme’s job creation objectives.
Quarries operators in the northern sector include; My Turn Quarry at Chuchuliga in the Upper East Region, Adom and Arigu quarries in the North East Region, the Upper Quarry and Mawums Quarry, which operates within the Bazua area of the Binduri District and Bolgatanga.
The northern road network
The Big Push programme focuses on several major roads in the northern sector, including the Tamale Orbital Motorway, sections of the Eastern Corridor roads and routes along the Upper Corridor.
These include the Pulmakom-Bawku-Bolgatanga-Tumu-Wa road, the Tamale-Yendi Road, the Tamale-Daboya-Busunu-Sawla-Chache road and the Sakoo-Nankpanduri-Bunkpurugu road, among others.
The scale of these projects underscores the importance of ensuring a reliable supply of construction materials to prevent avoidable delays and additional costs.
Challenges on the Chuchuliga-Nakong road
Some of the challenges confronting contractors became evident during a visit by the Ghana News Agency (GNA), to ongoing Big Push projects along the Navrongo-Chuchuliga-Sandema and Navrongo-Chuchuliga-Tumu roads.
The Navrongo-Chuchuliga-Sandema road project covers a 10-kilometre stretch, while the Navrongo-Chuchuliga-Tumu project stretches 34.23 kilometres, with My Turn Limited undertaking the works.
Mr Bismark Kpobi, an Engineer with My Turn Limited, told the GNA in an interview that only the 10-kilometre Chuchuliga-Sandema stretch was being undertaken under the Big Push programme and that all earthworks on the section had been completed.
He, however, identified difficulties in accessing borrowed pits as one of the challenges confronting the contractor.
He said the company needed further consultations with communities and landowners to secure access to suitable sites for obtaining materials to support the ongoing works.
Although borrowed pits are expected to be rehabilitated and restored to communities after construction, accessing them remains a challenge, with the associated costs in some nearby communities reportedly high.
Another challenge involves the clearing of trees along sections of the Chiana township stretch to facilitate the construction of drains.
Disagreements between the contractor and some community members over the removal of the trees could delay the drainage works if the issues are not resolved through consultations and agreement on compensation or access arrangements.
Water supply is also becoming a challenge as some local water bodies dry up, leaving communities with limited water resources for domestic use and livestock.
Consequently, residents are reluctant to release the little water available to contractors, leaving the Tono Dam as the main alternative source for construction activities.
This means that water tankers have to travel longer distances to transport water to the project sites, increasing operational costs.
These challenges demonstrate that, beyond the availability of quarry materials, contractors must also contend with access to land, community relations and the availability of water to sustain construction activities.
In an interview with the GNA in Bolgatanga, Mr Philip Samini, a retired Engineer and former Upper East Regional Director of the Ghana Highway Authority, also highlighted the financial challenges confronting contractors.
He said delays in project implementation were not attributable solely to the availability of quarry materials but also to inadequate cash flow and delays in payments for work completed.
He urged the government to ensure that funds were released promptly to contractors to enable them to execute their mandates effectively.
He said the Big Push programme would achieve meaningful results only if contractors received adequate and timely funding and had access to the required construction materials, supported by modern equipment.
“The Big Push will only have the desired impact if the cash flow needs of the people executing the projects are met and the materials for road construction are readily available, with the necessary modern equipment to ensure their supply,” he said.
Mr Samini stressed that the programme must be accompanied by investments in modern equipment to improve the implementation of the projects.
He added that, like similar infrastructure initiatives under previous administrations, the Big Push could face implementation challenges if contractors continued to struggle with cash flow problems.
Contractors and the supply chain
The financial difficulties confronting contractors also have implications for the wider construction supply chain.
Many contractors continue to grapple with debts arising from delays in the payment of mobilisation funds.
Consequently, when such funds are eventually released, some are used to maintain ageing machinery and vehicles rather than support the effective execution of new projects.
This situation further highlights the need for adequate financial support and investment in modern equipment across the construction sector.
Mr Ambrose Tee, a Civil Engineer, who also spoke to the GNA, urged site engineers to ensure that quarry materials delivered to construction sites met the required standards.
He acknowledged the high demand for materials from the Upper Quarry and described its granite as among the best for road construction.
Mr Tee said the government needed to recognise material supply contractors as important partners in the road construction value chain.
He explained that they played a critical role in connecting quarry operators to road construction companies and ensuring that the appropriate materials were delivered to project sites in the required quantities and within the stipulated timeframes.
Recognising and supporting these suppliers, he said, would help strengthen the construction supply chain and minimise disruptions to ongoing projects.
The way forward
For the Big Push programme to achieve its intended objectives, Ghana’s existing quarry industry, particularly the Upper Quarry, needs to be strengthened and expanded through investments in modern machinery and equipment.
There is also a need to attract fresh investments into new quarry operations, particularly in areas where geological assessments confirm the availability of adequate mineral resources.
Potential investors should be supported through transparent licensing procedures and predictable approval processes to encourage investment in the sector.
The government, in collaboration with financial institutions, could also consider providing affordable credit facilities to qualified quarry operators and material suppliers to enable them to acquire modern machinery, expand storage facilities and improve transportation capacity.
Equally important is the need to ensure timely payments to contractors and other service providers to maintain a steady flow of funds throughout the project implementation process.
The challenges confronting the Big Push programme go beyond the availability of funding for road construction.
They also involve the capacity of local industries to supply essential materials, the readiness of contractors, access to construction sites and the efficiency of the entire supply chain.
Ultimately, the success of the Big Push will depend on how effectively these supporting sectors are strengthened to complement the government’s investment in road infrastructure.
Without a reliable supply of quality construction materials, modern equipment and timely financial support, the ambitious programme could struggle to meet its targets.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/ Christabel Addo
Reporter: Fatima Anafu-Astanga
Email: [email protected]