10 Mar 2019

Employees of the multi-million Pula Kazungula Bridge project contractor, Daewoo Engineering Company resumed duty last week following a three-day strike over delayed salaries.

In an interview after President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi’s tour of the project on recently, Minister of Transport and Communications, Ms Dorcas Makgato said workers downed tools for three days following a delay in the payment of salaries, but the contractor had since assured the issue had been sorted out. 

Ms Makgato explained that Dr Masisi had asked his Zambian counterpart to speed up the payment of the contractor as Botswana government had paid its part on time.

She said the project was 75 per cent complete and was expected to be finished as initially projected, but indicated that any delay such as the strike had the potential to impact negatively on progress.

Ms Makgato however said it was possible to speed up the work and catch up on lost time.

The project, which entails construction of a 923 metre-long rail/road extra dosed cable stayed bridge with approach roads as well as construction of one stop border posts on the Zambia and Botswana sides, is scheduled for completion this year.

The bridge is expected to reduce transit time for freight and passengers, boost the regional economy and even increase global competitiveness of goods from Botswana and Zambia due to reduced time-based trade and transport costs. ENDS