By MILDRED KATONGO  –
FRECA Mining Construction Company has been awarded a contract to construct the Mwinilunga-Jimbe Road at a cost of US$100 million.
North-Western Province Minister Dawson Kafwaya said the Government had engaged Freca Mining Construction Company to work on the road linking Mwinilunga to the border with Angola’s Jimbe area.
Mr Kafwaya said the contractor who would also work on township roads was already mobilising equipment in readiness for the works.
He said the construction works, which were expected to be completed in 18 months, would also boost agricultural activities.
Mr Kafwaya said Mwinilunga District had fertile land for agriculture but was lagging behind in terms of transporting the produce, especially pineapples due to bad roads.
“The Government is committed to openning up rural areas by constructing roads. The Mwinilunga-Jimbe Road is an important road that also links Zambia to Angola. Once completed we expect economic and agricultural activities to improve,” Mr Kafwaya said.
He said it was imperative that people supported the road projects currently under way in the province as a good road network attracted investments.
Mr Kafwaya said people should not politicise the development that was taking shape in North-Western Province but embrace and support the initiative.
He said President Edgar Lungu believed in taking development everywhere, including the rural parts of the country.
“In terms of development, I can assure that President Lungu, who is running this Government, is capable of taking this nation forward by taking development everywhere, even in the rural areas. We can testify, because we have seen that development,” Mr Kafwaya said.