Business
Despite Gloom And Doom, PNG's Yumi Bridges A Success
1.5 million people to benefit from project
Amid all the social and economic problems in Papua New Guinea, there is a success story; at least as far as infrastructure development is concerned.
In a country where 85 percent of its five million people depend on land transport, there is no other better story.
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The country is being bridged from one end to the other by Mabey & Johnson, a British company under a 31 million pounds loan agreement with the Papua New Guinea government.
Under the agreement, Mabey & Johnson will build 166 Compact 2000 bridges throughout Papua New Guinea, replacing the traditional bailey bridges which are found all over the country.
A Compact 2000 bridge is easy to build, easy to transport, and easy to stock.
Developed in 1997, this is the state-of-the-art bridge, galvanised for maximum protection. It is manufactured from special steel to ensure long life. It has a life expectancy of 60 years.
The construction of Compact 2000 bridges started last year under the former government’s “Yumi Yet” programme. It is progressing well and well ahead of schedule.
Eight bridges have been built in the Eastern Highlands, Western Highlands, Madang, Morobe and Milne Bay provinces. A further six were to be completed in Milne Bay, Madang, and East Sepik provinces by the end of September.
This would bring to 14 the total number of bridges built since work on the programme started in July.
Engineers have surveyed a further 72 sites and 62 are in the designing stage.
At this rate, project supplier Mabey & Johnson is confident it will complete the project in less than three years.
This accelerated implementation is bound to have a dramatic and positive impact on infrastructure development within the country, particularly in the rural areas with worse communication links.
When work is completed on the 166 sites which have been selected, these will directly affect the lives of more than one and a half million people. This would place Yumi Yet Bridges programme as one of the most positive and successful initiatives the Papua New Government has ever undertaken.
One of the latest completed bridges under the programme was Paua Peng bridge in the Western Highlands province.
Works Minister Gabriel Kapris opened the bridge in early September. Mabey & Johnson and the Department of Works engineers, with local help, built the 30-metre bridge, valued at K$700,000 in 21 days.
