Liberia presses for accelerated transport development

20 November 2009

President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has highlighted the need for accelerated progress on transport infrastructure projects.

She called upon the nation's development partners to end delays on the construction and rehabilitation of the highway networks.

"We need roads - we need them now," Ms Johnson Sirleaf told the ministry of public works, the World Bank and the African Center for Economic Transformation at this week's Retreat on Infrastructure meeting.

Funding was a headline topic at the meeting the president looked outward to the examples of other countries of a similar profile.

She also expressed concern that Pillar IV of the Poverty Reduction Strategy, which targets infrastructure needs, was possibly too "sophisticated" for a nation recently emerging from civil conflict and lacking technical resources and experience.

Ms Johnson Sirleaf admitted feeling impatient at the slow progress and pointed out the plan had taken three years to draw up.

The country has so far under the strategy repaired 158 kilometres of road and built a bridge in Grand Kru County.

Category: Transport