At least 320 locals are set to benefit from Sh14 million Kisumu County Kisumu County Rural Roads Maintenance project.
The project targets to utilize unemployed youths and women to provide a facelift to over 210 kilometres of roads within all the 35 wards in the county.
Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o on Monday launched the program which will first target three kilometres of road in each village.
The move is a fulfillment of Governor Nyong’o’s manifesto pledge to establish Kisumu County Rural Roads Maintenance teams comprising youths and women as a way of creating employment and timely remedy to roads repair requirements.
“I am here today to fulfil that promise,” said Nyong’o when he launched the project in Seme Sub County.
“I want to congratulate the Department of Roads for working hard to ensure this program is implemented as we had promised our people,” added the Governor.
Kisumu County Rural Roads Maintenance Policy on road maintenance which was enacted in 2018 paved way for the operationalization of the program.
Nyong’o noted that the objectives of the road maintenance teams will include; ensuring that the roads are passable both by motorized and non-motorized traffic throughout the year, provide opportunities for youth and women economic empowerment through roads maintenance and to enable greater participation, ownership and responsibilities in road maintenance in the county by the local communities.
To make the program a success, the county has recruited on casual basis five Technical Supervisors, 35 Supervisors and 280 Road Maintenance Teams workers (Labourers). This translates to 1 Supervisor and eight workers per ward.
“My administration has set aside Sh14 million to cater for wages for the team during the first phase of the program,” he said.
According to the Governor, during the 2020-2021 Financial Years, his administration expanded and rehabilitated 250km of roads and 12 box culverts.
He said he plans to have 350 km of rural roads maintained during this financial year 2021/2022.
He said his administration recently launched Clay Crate Technology in roads maintenance. The technology offers new advancement in road maintenance which can sustain road condition between five to 10 years.
He noted that the technology is currently being used to maintain; Eight kilometre Guba-Gita-Namba –Kabong’o filter road in Kajulu Ward, and 4.2 kilometre Lela-Agulu-Mbaka Oromo road in North West Kisumu Ward.