Tsumkwe gravel road upgrade excites residents

THE ONGOING feasibility studies on the Tsumkwe C44 gravel road being conducted by the Roads Authority (RA) with a plan to upgrade it to bitumen standards continue to excite residents of the constituency.

The chief executive officer (CEO) of the RA, Conrad Lutombi, said in an interview with Nampa on Saturday that the feasibility studies on the road started in May this year, and are expected to be completed in March 2020.

He said a feasibility study involves regular site visits by road engineers and technical teams to investigate the accessibility constraints of the road, designs, and predict the traffic flows of the vehicles on it once it is completed.

The study on the C44 Tsumkwe gravel road would cost approximately N$2 million for a distance of about 300 kilometres from the T-junction of Grootfontein to Tsumkwe, Gam and the Dobe border post.

“I cannot hide my excitement to hear about the feasibility studies on the Tsumkwe road because it means one day the Tsumkwe gravel road will be tarred,” said Francina Hishekwa-Ghauz, Tsumkwe constituency councillor in an interview with Nampa on Thursday.

Hishekwa-Ghauz added that once the tarring is done, the constituency would start to see development activities coming to the people of Tsumkwe.

On his part, the deputy minister of marginalised communities, Royal /Ui/o/oo, also a resident of Tsumkwe, said once the C44 gravel road is upgraded to bitumen standard, Tsumkwe would start to experience economic growth and employment opportunities.

/Ui/o/oo added that the residents will even appreciate it more if the actual road construction is carried out in phases from Grootfontein to Rooidag Gate, later continued to Tsumkwe, Gam and the Dobe border post. “We have lost so many lives on this long gravel road of approximately 300 kilometres. Therefore, any upgrading on it will definitely improve our lives,” he stated.

– Nampa