Supporting the road transport authorities in Somalia
Project description
Title: Sustainable Road Maintenance Project (SRMP)
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Co-funded by: European Union
Country: Somalia
Lead executing agency: Federal Level: Ministry of Public Works, Reconstruction and Housing (MoPWRH), Puntland State of Somalia: Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Climate Change (MoEACC), “Somaliland”: Ministry of Planning and National Development (MoPND), Ministry of Transport and Roads Development (MoTRD)
Overall term: 2014 to 2020
Context
Following the two-decade-long civil war which destroyed almost all political, social and economic structures in Somalia, the state has lost its ability to project the three dimensions of statehood. Consequently, Somalia has been considered a failed state since 1991.
Due to the conflict and absence of regulatory frameworks, the transport infrastructure which is vital for the country’s economic & social development is in poor condition. Inadequacies in the infrastructure sector in Somalia became a major constraint to the population’s access to social services and an obstacle for the economic recovery of the region.
The backbone of Somalia’s economy, trade—especially livestock export which amounts to around 5 million animals annually—forms the major source of income for most Somalis. Capable road networks are crucial in this regard as roads connect people and promote economic growth.
Despite rampant insecurity and low capacity, restoring the operability of partner agencies in this sector through multi-disciplinary capacity building initiatives is a sustainable way to ensure no further deterioration of the existing infrastructure. Investment in rehabilitation and maintenance is a key factor for development in the region.
Objective
The legal, institutional and personnel capacities of public actors in the transportation sectors in Somaliland, Puntland and South-Central Somalia are improved and the drought resilience of communities has increased.
Approach
The Sustainable Road Maintenance Project (SRMP) supports road authorities in Somalia to rehabilitate and maintain the existing road network preventing the collapse of key infrastructure in the medium term. A range of infrastructure and non-infrastructure interventions are used to strengthen the technical, institutional and legislative capacity of institutions in the transport sector of the country.
SRMP supports governmental entities on the federal level, in Puntland and Somaliland to develop legislative frameworks for the road infrastructure sector and road maintenance management systems designed to prevent the deterioration of key roads. Moreover, the project focuses on the organisational development of partner agencies to improve their capacity and apply the improved capacity of partner agencies in national and regional lighthouse projects. Extensive training programmes as well as the provision of equipment and material form part of the project’s scope.
The sustainability approach includes involvement of the private sector and communities wherever possible. The project uses its engineering capacities to support the construction of water supply and storage infrastructure for up to 75,000 beneficiaries in the region of Puntland. To support rural communities, all road works involve elements of cash for work activities for unskilled workers.
Results
Successful road rehabilitation works have been executed with up to 38 km being completed. This has reduced the travel time significantly and improved access to markets and social services. 52 culverts along the Hargeisa -Kalabydh road section have been repaired and cleaned to control floods during the rainy season.
The institutional and technical capacity of the authorities are consolidated. Legal frameworks including Roads Law, Traffic Code and Axle load control regulations have been established and the institutional setup as well as the organisational development for road agencies have been concluded. Equipment, software and training has been provided to enable partner agencies to execute their legal mandate effectively.
National road standards have been developed and established in conformity with international standards and are applied in all ongoing works. Resilience of communities in Puntland has improved with the rehabilitation of 25 berkads and ongoing construction of five earth dams as well as the water related structures. The construction of 10 conservation and gully rehabilitation structures has improved resilience of the rangeland ecosystem