The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has announced that earth-moving equipment acquired through the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) will soon be deployed to construct farm roads across the country. He stated that all districts would be provided with fuel to operate the DRIP machines, ensuring they are used for their intended purpose.
Speaking to journalists in Kumasi on Sunday, June 15, Mr. Opoku also revealed that the government would temporarily pause all major road construction projects in rural areas to allow for the effective utilization of the DRIP equipment.
“What we intend to do is to provide all districts with the financial resources to fuel the machines and use the available equipment to develop access roads. This will make it easier to transport food from farms to communities without any difficulty,” he said. The minister further disclosed that some officials were preparing to award new road construction contracts in rural areas, but he intervened to stop them.
“Just last week, some people were preparing to award contracts for the construction of roads in some rural communities. I asked them to stop because we already have the equipment. All we need to do is provide them with fuel and let them go to work,” he added.
By: Sammi Wiafe
