• DR Congo launches construction of 69-km Batshamba-Gungu-Kakobola road
• Project built by China’s CISC-SA under Sino-Congolese cooperation programme
• Road upgrade aims to improve transport and agricultural market access

Construction of Provincial Road 231 linking Batshamba to Kakobola via Gungu was launched on March 3 in Kwilu province by Infrastructure and Public Works Minister John Banza Lunda.

The 69-kilometre road connects the towns of Batshamba, Gungu and Kakobola, all located in Gungu territory.

Chinese company CISC-SA is carrying out the works under the Sino-Congolese cooperation programme for infrastructure development. The Congolese Agency for Major Works (ACGT) is overseeing the project.

According to ACGT Director General Nico Nzau Nzau, the works include clearing the road corridor, laying the different pavement layers, building drainage structures and reinforcing existing crossings. Road signage and safety equipment will also be installed along the route.

The project will be implemented in two phases. The first phase will reopen the road along its entire length to restore traffic between the three towns. The second phase will involve paving the road to transform the current dirt track into a developed road.

The poor condition of the road currently hampers the movement of people and the transport of agricultural products to markets. Modernising the Batshamba-Gungu-Kakobola section should therefore improve mobility in this part of Kwilu province and strengthen connections between rural areas and the region’s main transport corridors.

Boaz Kabeya, with Bankable