By Godfred A. Polkuu
Bolgatanga, Aug. 26, GNA – Alhaji Dr Hafiz Bin Salih, the Upper East Regional Minister, says 450 residents of the Region will be employed to operate the earth–moving equipment under the District Road Improvement Project (DRIP).
The DRIP is a government initiative aimed at improving road networks in rural areas across the country.
Alhaji Dr Salih said each of the 15 Municipal and District Assemblies was expected to employ 30 operators, making 450 operators under the project.
The Minister said this after he inspected the first consignment of the equipment in the company of members of the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) in Bolgatanga.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo launched about 2,240 earth moving equipment under the project, and the Upper East Region was expected to receive 117 of the equipment to be distributed to all 15 Municipal and District Assemblies.
The Region’s share of the equipment includes 15 tipper trucks, backhoes, water tankers, rollers, motor graders, six-wheel loaders, three bulldozers, three low beds and 30 concrete mixers.
The Minister said, “Each of the Assemblies is expected to employ 30 operators and if you multiply 30 by the 15 Assemblies that we have in the Upper East Region, that will give us 450. So just by procuring this equipment alone, 450 employment vacancies would be filled.
“It is my expectation that the various Assemblies in the Upper East Region will put the equipment to effective use. One of the challenging issues of our Region has to do with our routes, but with this equipment, I believe there will be improvement in the road sector”, he said.
Alhaji Dr Salih said there would be practical training sessions for the selected operators, noting that “It is a comprehensive exercise, and we are not going to leave any stone unturned.”
He said the Common Fund would make resources available to fund the equipment and expressed confidence that the 15 Assemblies would soon receive their share of it.
He noted that not all the equipment would be dispatched to the Assemblies but explained that some would be at the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC), for release to any Assembly on request, for use at any given time.
He said the equipment was fitted with trackers which would be monitored intensely, saying “If equipment is allocated to Bolga Municipal, it cannot crossover to Bolga East. There is a monitoring system, and so once it is crossing it will stop. And so, they are for the areas they have been allocated to”, he added.
The Minister urged the respective Municipal and District Chief Executives to ensure that the equipment was effectively used for the intended purpose and encouraged the media to critically play its watchdog role to ensure it was not misused.
GNA