Kigamboni Bridge project too big for NSSF

The construction of the long-awaited Kigamboni Bridge in Dar es Salaam calls for more funding than the National Social Security Fund can come up with by itself, the government disclosed yesterday. Omary Chambo, Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Infrastructure Development ministry, said in an exclusive interview with The Guardian in the city that NSSF would be fully involved as a co-financier but was without the entire amount of money needed to implement the multi-billion-shilling project. Speaking on the sidelines of a joint infrastructure sector review workshop, he said: `Consultations between the Government and potential financiers have started. The government is working hard to source funds to finance the project because it is obvious that it will spare Kigamboni residents the transport woes they have been enduring.` Chambo explained that several development partners have shown interest in financing the project but he would neither give any names nor specify the amount of money to be spent on the project, which is a brainchild of NSSF. There have been widespread complaints by Members of Parliament and members of the larger public that there were needless delays in getting the project started. Kigamboni residents have faced hard times over the years crossing the Magogoni Creek as they moved to metropolitan Dar es Slaam and back, with the two pontoons they heavily depend on suffering frequent breakdowns. Citing funding as the biggest stumbling block to the implementation of the project, the PS noted: `As the Government continues to solicit finances from our development partners, it is also conducting a cost-benefit analysis to establish the exact amount of money needed. But we are sure we are talking about huge sums of money which is just too much for NSSF to come up with.` A preliminary feasibility study on the project has been completed but the government is still sorting out the modalities of implementation as proposed by experts, he added. He said the issue of how the implementation would run was one of the significant components under the project `because the government must be very keen in this respect`. When completed, the bridge will link Dar es Salaam proper to its Kigamboni suburb and surrounding areas. It will be about 560m long and have 14.5 wide deck and a two-lane 3.75m carriageway. In 2004 it was estimated that the bridge would cost $28.6 million. Speaking to The Guardian shortly after officially opening yesterday`s workshop, Infrastructure Development deputy minister Maua Daftari, said: `The plan to build the bridge is on track. The Government is very serious about its implementation beginning very soon.` But she too was short on specifics. Opening the workshop, Dr Daftari appealed to all stakeholders concerned to assist the government in `designing modalities for getting cost-effective support for the development of the country?s infrastructure.` `You also need to consider how to build the capacity required for sustaining infrastructure development and maintenance, how the private sector could be fully involved in infrastructure development, ownership, and so on,` she said. Meanwhile, European Union Head of Cooperation Enrico Strampelli explained that a thorough review of roles and set-ups of the Infrastructure Development ministry and Tanzania Roads Agency (TANROADS) and a re-examination of local government capacity were crucial steps towards boosting the development of the infrastructure sector. He said all these issues were critical ?as we try to establish a truly sector-wide approach with emphasis on quality and sustainability. Attending the three-day workshop are stakeholders from across the infrastructure sector, among them financiers, planners, service providers and consumers. They are expected to review and draw up a `roadmap` for the progressive development of the sector.