President John Dramani Mahama on Friday, July 25, ended his nationwide “Thank You Tour” attending a durbar of the chiefs and people of the Oti Region in Damabi.
The tour, which began on January 24, in Ho, the Volta Regional capital, took the President to all 16 regions of Ghana, for him to express his gratitude to Ghanaians for their massive support for him and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the December 7, 2024, general elections.
Speaking at a mammoth durbar of the chiefs and people of the Oti region at the Dambai College of Education, President Mahama rolled out a massive road infrastructural development plan for the transformation of the region.
“Oti region is a key transit zone for food and goods from the north to the south and it deserves focused and targeted investments,” President Mahama said.
“The Eastern Corridor Road, one of our country’s most strategic transportation lanes, is a top priority under my administration and I assure you that the completion of the Nkwanta Kpasah-Oti Damanko stretch of the Eastern Corridor will not be delayed.”
He noted that it had already been captured under the programme and commencement had been signed for the contractors to go to sites and complete their segments of the road.
The President said the Minister had assured the contractors that any road they construct and raise a certificate for payment, would be paid within two weeks after the Ministry of Finance receives such certificate.
President Mahama also announced some critical road projects that were currently going through the required procurement processes under the Big Push programme.
He said they had received commencement certificates and now there were procurements to decide which contractors were going to be selected to execute.
These include the construction of the Dambai Bridge over the Oti River.
“I can assure you that this bridge will commence this year and we will cut the sod for this bridge together,” he said.
Others are the upgrading of the Okadjakrom-Kwamekrom Road, upgrading of the Apotoase-Atonko Road, upgrading of Kpassa-Tijansi Road, rehabilitation of the Hohoe-Jasikan Road and the upgrading of the Nkwanta-Oti Damanko Road.
The rest are the rehabilitation of the Hohoe-Baika-Jasikan Road and construction of the Nkwanta-Dambai Road.
The President said additionally, other roads in the Oti region were currently undergoing technical costing with procurement processes to follow soon, which would cover roads in the Kete-Krachi district, in Krachi Nchumuru and in the Guan districts.
He said the Government had chosen 166 constituencies where it was going to do 10 kilometers of roads per year, making it 40 kilometers within the four years.
“And I’m pleased to announce to you that all the constituencies in the Oti region are included in the 166,” he said.
“We are also exploring the potential of inland water systems to connect communities and facilitate trade and mobility across the region.”
The President also promised to provide the region with a modern Regional Hospital, a University and a modern sports stadium.
GNA
Edited by Lydia Kukua Asamoah
