Tanzania: Construction of Chinese firm-funded major road junction 25 pct completed

An official said on March 27 that the construction of Ubungo Interchange, a major road junction in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, has reached 25 percent of its completion. The USD 80.96 million project is funded by the World Bank and being constructed by China Civil Engineering Construction Cooperation.

The project manager from the Tanzania National Roads Agency, Barakael Mmari opined that the construction of 266-meter interchange was expected to be completed in December 2020. The state-owned agency is in charge with the development, maintenance and management of trunk and regional roads.

Barakael Mmari was briefing members of the Parliamentary Standing Public Accounts Committee on a visit to the construction site to see progress made. Mmari told the lawmakers that the interchange was set to have a life span of 100 years just like many other such infrastructures elsewhere across the world. "We have so far completed 25 percent of the project and we have not experienced any casualties at the construction site, instead, ever since the construction started the rate of accidents has been reduced at the Ubungo junction," Mmari opined.

On March 20, 2017, Tanzanian President John Magufuli and the former World Bank President Jim Yong Kim laid the foundation stone for the Ubungo interchange project, connecting Nelson Mandela, Sam Nujoma and Morogoro roads. The project was expected to reduce traffic congestion on the busy Ubungo junction with more than 60,000 vehicles passing daily.

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