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Gabon |
DEVELOPMENT
During the last ten years, the state of Gabon’s roads has got worse and
worse.
This means the country’s overall development is being impeded
Gabon’s road are in such a state because of the increase in the number of vehicles and the lack of road maintenance. Funds allocated for highway construction and upkeep have been misused, and it’s only recently that Gabon’s leaders have started to wonder why the country’s road network is in such a poor shape. All this means the country’s economic development has slowed down and tourism has never taken off, in spite of large sums of money being allocated to the tourism sector.
Richard Damas works with Gabon’s Highways and Byways Department. He says that during the period 1994-1997, the road infrastructure was a major capital expenditure for the State. «In 1994, expenditure in this sector rose to 39.8 billion CFA francs (i.e. 30.3% of budgeted expenditure) in 1994; in 1995, this had risen to 51.7 billion CFA francs (i.e. 38% of budgeted expenditure); in 1996 it was 48.5 billion CFA francs (i.e. 31.4% of budgeted expenditure; and in 1997, 65.4 billion CFA francs (i.e. 30.3% of budgeted expenditure».
Questions
Libreville’s last major road repair project dates back to 1997, at the time of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) Summit for Heads of State. Since then, the roads have been falling more and more into disrepair. Upkeep of local roads within urban centres is the responsibility of the appropriate town hall. National highways passing through towns are supposed to be looked after by the central government. However, more often than not, local authorities don’t have the necessary funds, so pass the buck to central government. Prime Minister Jean-François Ntoutoume Emane puts it this way: «During the last five years, the State has accepted to make enormous efforts to improve the roads in 33 urban centres. Until then, only provincial capitals were able to call upon central government funding».
This problem has split the government and recently caused Mr Zacharie Myboto, Minister for Road Maintenance, Construction and Urban Development, to resign. President Omar Bongo blamed Mr Myboto for the appalling state of the national road network. For his part, the Minister said he simply didn’t have the necessary funding to do his job properly. The Minister for the Economy, Finance, the Budget and Privatisation organised an audit of funds allocated to road construction and maintenance in Gabon, with the intention of finding out how public monies allocated had been spent. The audit revealed there was a total absence of any kind of control over what happened to allocations, and nothing by way of a follow-up to inspect the quality of work undertaken. The audit also brought to light the fact that road construction regulations had clearly not been followed, thus resulting in slip-shod work in road construction — roads must be continually repaired because the work is of such poor quality.
French monopoly
in the road construction business
In February 1999, the South African daily newspaper, Business Day, published an article on the involvement of French companies in the Construction and Public Works sectors in Gabon. This article underlined the absence of competition in the construction business in Gabon and the way in which the work was done. On a number of occasions, South African businessmen went to Gabon to look into possibilities in the public works sector. Business Day wrote: «It’s clear that major road construction projects in Gabon undertaken for the most part by French companies installed in Gabon, is of pretty poor quality. South African companies could do the job much better».
From Johannesburg, the article went the rounds of French embassies and caused a major upset in concerned circles. The upshot was that in 1998, a choice was made to ask the South African company, LTA, specialized in public sector work, to undertake major construction projects. French companies in Gabon which had held a monopoly of this type of work for nigh on forty years, were stung to the quick.
Paulin Nang is in charge of Gabon’s urban road network. He says: «In the 1970s, the Yugoslavians built roads which have stood the test of time. But French business refuses to acknowledge the quality of the Yugoslavian’s work. Nowadays, if the government wants a good road network, then it can and must do something about it. There was sufficient money at the time of the oil boom in the 1970s to build roads through the country. These days, most of our country’s leaders are shareholders in public work’s companies, so the more work undertaken on the road system, the more they should be pleased!
Having seen the finger of accusation pointed at them, a number of French public works companies have now tried to improve the quality of their work. They were somewhat shaken by the news that the South African LTA company (already present in Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Tanzania) was going to be allocated major contracts in Gabon. This showed the government was serious about introducing an element of competition into major road construction projects; it also showed the government recognized and appreciated South African expertise.
Expensive work
Towards the end of 1993, a major road improvement project was launched. Within seven years, 465 km of road surface were tarred. Most still remains to be done. Zacharie Myboto explains: «Because of Gabon’s financial difficulties in 1998 and the retention of aid by donor nations and organisations, road work was suspended». Yet, the same year, the World Bank undertook a grandiose Project To Plan and Improve Urban Roads and Transport (PAPSUT). Road construction and renovation needs during the year 2000 were put at 19.5 billion CFA francs. The government could only raise 8 billion CFA francs.
Benoit Moussavou is a public works engineer. He says: «The National Commission for Putting Projects out to Tender, as well as Gabon’s financial backers, realized that the cost per kilometre of road construction and repair work is very high in Gabon. In urban centres it’s more expensive than in rural areas». The general high cost of living in Gabon is also partly responsible for the high quotations for work to be undertaken and for road construction material. Also, when it comes to road building, then there’s any number of natural obstacles such as dense forests, rivers, marshes, mountains. This makes the cost of road-building per kilometre in Gabon, among the most expensive projects of its kind in the world.
Transport
There’s an ever-increasing number of vehicles in Libreville, Gabon’s capital, where more than half the country’s population live. The roads are not very practicable, traffic jams are frequent especially during rush hours.
Gabon depends on its road infrastructure to receive food imports from neighbouring countries via its land frontiers. The poor state of the country’s road network impedes the smooth flow of goods towards the urban centres. Irregularities in the arrival of food supplies from the interior of the country as well as from outside (Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, among others) have been experienced for several months, so much so, that food prices have risen drastically.
Truth to say, our country’s main and minor roads are in a shocking state. This means that people have difficulty in getting from one place to another, and goods are delayed on the way. Lucien Mouity is a land surveyor. He explains the logistics: «Gabon’s road network is about 7,600 km. There are 900 km of tarred roads and about 4,000 km of laterite roads. The rest of the network, some 2,700 km, is surfaced with packed earth. Consequently, there’s not much by way of a road haulage sector. Those transport firms which do exist, ensure their vehicles keep to the better-class roads in rural areas. The same goes for transport within urban areas. In October 1998, a Master Plan for Transport was drawn up. The Plan outlines priority changes to be made and concrete measures to be taken during the period 1998-2015. But will the State have the wherewithal to carry out the Plan during this time of economic recession?»
A year ago, the government established three objectives for its Transport Plan: To supply adequate transport facilities for people and goods at a reasonable price, together with good quality service and satisfactory safety precautions; to improve transport facilities in order to bolster the country’s economy; to contribute to Gabon’s economic growth by generating added value.
Take a look around and you’ll see that in Gabon’s cities and towns there’s not much of an adequate road system. And if such is the case in urban areas, what about our country’s rural areas, especially in the villages? It’s becoming impossible for the farmers to get their goods to market in the centres. Gabon is faced with a major challenge so that it can become self-sufficient in its alimentary and other needs. Since Independence, providing the country with a good road network has not yet been achieved, and as yet, there’s no solution.
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