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ASIST Bulletin no. 9, July 1999 Kenya, Roads 2000 coast By Arne Engdahl, Coast Province, Kenya The Minor Roads Coast Programme terminated operations in February 1999 after almost five years, and the long expected Roads2000 Coast Danida project is now about to take off, most likely from the beginning of the Kenya financial year in mid 1999. Training in road condition surveys and contract management for the new project has been carried out recently. The main purpose of the Roads2000 Coast project is to privatise road construction and maintenance in four districts of the Kenya Coast Province. The project lays emphasis on labour-based activities. As a first step it is intended to develop small-scale routine maintenance contractors based on labour only. Advisory services and training will be provided for a period of two years by a Danida team of three advisers, supplemented by consultants. Additional new construction equipment is not included in the project and several options for the privatisation of the existing equipment (tractors and trailers) will be explored: hire/lease, creation of a rental pool, sell off, etc. The Kenya Ministry of Public Works & Housing has announced a cut in permanent staff employment this year of 40%, so the time is ripe for development of private enterprises. Some Coast overseers and road inspectors who have substantial technical experience in labour-based road construction and maintenance are eager to start on a small scale, and established contractors, even some based in Nairobi, have expressed interest. Timely payment of contractors is crucial. A reorganisation of the Kenya road administration has been proposed with the establishment of a Road Board in control of fuel levy funds, which would be directly channeled to the districts and operated by District Works Officers and District Treasuries jointly. This arrangement intends to eliminate some financial bottlenecks in the flow of money from the Ministry of Finance to contractors. Danida will finance the Roads2000 Coast project activities by reimbursement of expenditures through the Ministry of Finance after work is done and paid for, so a fast flow of funds is important. Another crucial issue is the maintenance of the labour-based focus of the road construction and maintenance operations. The Minor Roads Programme district units were merged mid in 1998 with the regular road sections, which were heavy grading oriented. However, the new district road administrations are largely to be seen as an expansion of the MRPs with motorised grading, and the choice of methods will very much depend on the new District Roads Engineers. The success of the Roads2000 Programme and the future use of labour-based methods will largely depend on (1) the establishment and survival of small-scale contractors, (2) the inclusion of labour-based operations in the portfolio of medium/larger contractors, and (3) the MoPWH's ability to implement the Strategic Plan for the Kenya Road Sector. The Strategic Plan emphasises the use of labour-based methods wherever feasible. Considering Kenya's firmly established record as a pioneer of labour-based road construction and maintenance, it would be disappointing to witness a fallback to traditional, machine-based methods. The Year 2000 is approaching fast, but the Roads2000 Coast Project should in spite of bugs have good chances for demonstrating results before the new millennium starts. It should thereby contribute to secure Kenya's position in the field of labour-based road construction and maintenance and, more importantly, contribute to institutional development of the Kenya Roads Department and to a much needed boost of the Kenya Coast economy. |
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