Story by Mark Naftalin.
"The rehabilitation of road infrastructure constitutes one of the greatest priorities of the government." This is how Pedro Walipi Calenga, Director of the National Office for Humanitarian Assistance, greeted the historic completion of MAG’s road and bridge project in Eastern Angola.
As a direct result of the road clearance and verification undertaken by MAG since early 2005, it is now possible for the first time in decades to travel safely on 250km of primary road running deep into the interior of Moxico Province.
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 Luzi river before and after the bridge reconstruction |
With diverse partners including local authorities, international NGOs, the UN and European Governments, MAG has played an integral role in an $8million international project, which has included opening corridors into Angola’s three neighbouring countries – Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia and Zambia – and resulted in the construction of over 30 bridges.
Angola remains one of the most mine-affected countries in the world. Almost 2,000 communities are contaminated by landmines and this impacts on approximately 2.4 million people.
Moxico Province, MAG’s area of operations, contains 38% of the country’s highly impacted sites and has a general prevalence rate of twice the country’s average.
The Angolan government has a comprehensive strategy in place to remove the obstacle of landmines, with MAG assisting in the implementation of that strategy in Moxico Province. As stated by Calenga, "MAG is one of the most important Government partners in developing humanitarian mine action in Eastern Angola".
During the 27-year conflict, a significant number of bridges were destroyed throughout the region. Furthermore, the road itself was considered highly dangerous with numerous landmines, munitions and other explosive remnants of conflict scattered along it.
Landmines once littered the road and bridge sites, meaning that they had to be painstakingly cleared before construction could take place. Only once the area was considered safe could MAG’s partners – the Swedish Rescue Services Agency (SRSA) and the World Food Programme (WFP) – proceed to construct the bridges.
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| Click here for a larger map |
The project has been imperative given the impending legislative and presidential elections, which are likely to be held in 2008 and 2009 respectively.
Last year, the US State Department commented that landmines were a "serious impediment to conducting elections in Angola".
And Angolan President José Eduardo Dos Santos recently remarked that it is vital that there is a "programme of rehabilitation of primary roads…so that participation by citizens in the next polls is substantial".
Given the importance of these roads and bridges in connecting communities and providing access beyond their immediate vicinities, communities have, up until now, been largely excluded from basic social amenities, access to other regions, trade and general socio-economic growth.
Now that the road is fully opened, it is likely that socio-economic conditions and sustainable development will dramatically improve for those communities.
As MAG’s Field Coordination Officer, Marcello Cambembe, suggests, "the interior of the Province was isolated for many years and was once only accessible by air – now that has all changed".
The completion of the project was, said MAG Information Officer Antonio Lemos, "a wonderful day for the whole of Angola".
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| The local community line the newly-cleared road awaiting the Moxico Governor's inaugural convey |
Related links:
allAfrica.com: WFP Bridge Building Project Opens Road to Isolated Region in East
Reuters Africa: Post-war bridge projects reconnect Angola interior
MAG would like to express its gratitude and appreciation to the following donors who supported clearance activities during this project and those which are presently funding MAG in Angola:
