Yaounde: PM orders emergency works to tackle deplorable roads, poor waste disposal.

Speaking while opening the meeting, PM Dion Ngute regretted that the road infrastructure in Yaounde is in a state of advanced dilapidation. 

This, the Head of Government said, is not befitting for the reputation of a country’s capital.

He tasked the members of government and mayors, to without any delay, immediately address the situation of road maintenance and waste disposal in Yaounde no matter the existing challenges. 

The PM called on the officials to also propose long term measures to put in place sustainable solutions to the issue of bad roads and poor waste disposal across the capital city. 

Speaking shortly after the meeting with the Prime Minister, concerned members of government assured of steps to be taken to implement the instructions to last letter.

The Minister of Decentralisation and Local Development, George Elanga Obam, said: “Our roads need to be repaired and very quickly too”.

He, however, regretted lack of funds to handle such emergency repair works on roads in the capital city. 

The member of government said with the lack of finances, they will have to engage in “practical solution” to use the little money available to carry out the repair works. 

For her part, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Célestine Ketcha Courtès, blamed the situation on the ageing nature of existing roads which deteriorate further during the rainy season.

She, however, assured that based on the instructions of the Head of Government, they will be more “creative” in using the limited resources to proffer solutions to the problems. 

“We want to look for a sustainable approach with compact contrite…I am sure that next year, we will support local authorities to go through a low-cost approach to make sure that our old roads have a solution,” Ketcha Courtès said. 

More companies need to handle waste 

Talking of the worrying situation of waste disposal, Minister Elanga Obam said there is the urgent need for change in the way it has been handled in the past.

“…we do have one company that is doing all the job…it appears that it is not possible for that company to do the job alone,” he stated. 

The member of government underscored the need for “local councils to see what they can do and how they can be concrete in removing the waste”. 

In the long term, the Minister of Public Works, Emmanuel Nganou Djoumessi, said measures will be taken to classify roads in the capital city to determine the appropriate treatment for each case.

Minister Ketcha Courtès also proposed the use of non-imported materials, less expensive than tar, to reduce construction costs.