Construction will resume soon on the Bolgatanga-Bawku-Pulmakom road after years of delays caused by debt restructuring that halted UK funding, a ruling party official said.
Jonathan Abdallah Salifu, Upper East Regional Communications Officer for the National Democratic Congress, said the government has reignited the contract with UK officials and settled outstanding payments to the contractor.
“The monies that are owed the contractor in the past, I mean all certificates have been settled and the contractor has agreed to formally move back in full to site,” Mr. Salifu told A1 Radio, citing a statement from Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga Central, Isaac Adongo.
The road project, awarded in 2016 and originally tied to the Road Fund, has been under construction for nearly 10 years. The previous New Patriotic Party administration changed the funding source to loans from two UK banks, but debt restructuring stopped the money flow, halting construction.
On Sept. 24, Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson announced on social media that funding would resume following negotiations with the UK Trade Minister, Mr. Salifu said.
The contractor had previously returned to the site with skeleton staff working on bridges, he said. Remaining work includes completing a dual carriageway from the Kulaa bridge into town and finishing portions around Tilli, including an incomplete bridge.
“We are determined to finish it. We started it and we’ll finish it,” Mr. Salifu said.
The Upper East Region will also benefit from a road project recently launched by President John Dramani Mahama in Wa that extends through Tumu and Navrongo to Chiana, Mr. Salifu said. The deteriorated Chiana-Tumu stretch has slowed traffic and created security concerns.
“Because your vehicles cannot go at a speed and robbers also take the advantage to attack them,” he said.
Mr. Salifu expressed confidence in widespread infrastructure development across the region during 2026.
“Like President Mahama said, we are going to have a lot of work happening everywhere,” he said. “After the end of 2026, moving into 2027, at least we would have seen so much changes, especially with what we are yearning for.”
The 2026 budget, presented to Parliament on Thursday, emphasizes infrastructure investment, with officials announcing projects including a new airport for Upper East Region and increased district assembly funding.
Source: a1radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Bolgatanga
