China’s Ministry of Commerce provides RMB 579 million grant for Upper River Region (URR) Road and Rivers Project

On May 19, 2017, China’s Ministry of Commerce and the Government of the Gambia signed and Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA), which committed grant funding for an unspecified set of activities. Then, on December 27, 2017, the President of Gambia visited China. Shortly after his trip, the Chinese Government pledged to fund the Upper River Region (URR) Road and Rivers Project. A project implementation agreement was signed by the two governments on April 24, 2018. China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) reportedly committed RMB 579,080,000 of grant funding from the ETCA that was signed on May 19, 2017 for the URR Road and Rivers Project. The purpose of the project was to construct a new Basse-Fatoto-Koina road section and two new bridges (Basse-Wuli and Fatoto-Parsimus bridges) in Upper River Region (URR). More specifically, the project scope includes (1) The Basse‐Fatoto‐Koina Road, with a length of 47.133 kilometers, adopting asphalt concrete pavement, two‐way two‐lane standard, and a typical design speed of 60 km/h in rural areas and 40 km/h in township areas, the scope of work includes subgrade, pavement, drainage culvert works and related road supporting facilities; (2) The Basse Bridge and its link roads, with a length of 2.236 kilometers, of which the length of the bridge is 250 meters; (3) The Fatoto Bridge and its link roads, with a length of 1.769 kilometers, of which the length of the bridge is 170 meters; and (4) Medium bridges will be built at Chamoi K4+586 and Sare Alpha K26+907. On July 19, 2017, the Chinese and the Gambian governments signed an exchange of letters on a feasibility study for the project. Then, on October 12, 2017, a team from China was dispatch to the Gambia to conduct the feasibility study. The team returned to China on November 12, 2017. The feasibility study report and a project initiation proposal were approved on December 10, 2017. Then, according to the Gambian Department of the Treasury, in March 2018, MOFCOM selected CCCC Highway Consultants Co., Ltd — in association with Beijing Zhongjiao Highway and Bridge Engineering Supervision Co., Ltd — to supervise the project. Long Jian Road & Bridge Co., Ltd. was selected by MOFCOM on October 23, 2018 as the contractor responsible for project implementation. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on December 15, 2018. Then, on February 23, 2019 and 24, 2019, China’s Ambassador to the Gambia visited the project site and noted that the implementation will enhance convenience for locals and provide transportation efficiency for economic development. On March 13, 2019, China’s Ambassador to then Gambia visited the construction site again. He noted that materials and equipment were on site, and that construction activities were on track. Then, in April 2019, the Gambia’s Minister of Works and Infrastructure Bai Lamin Jobe, and Chinese Ambassador to the Gambia Ma Jianchun visited multiple project sites in the URR. At that time, Chinese Ambassador Ma Jianchun said that the project had achieved a 5.7% completion rate, and Minister Bai Lamin Jobe said that the target date for project completion was August 2021. Minister Bai Lamin Jobe conducted another project site visit on June 26, 2020. At that time, he said that when completed the project would positively impact the lives of the people of Upper River Region. He also said that “so far what I am hearing on the ground [is that] work is going fast and we should maintain the speed.” Then, on March 26, 2021, a lead consultant for the project, Mike Feng, announced that the project had achieved a 91.5% completion rate. He noted that the only remaining works were the asphalt pavement for the road, the marking of lines on the road, guardrails for the bridges, China Aid logos on structures, and slope stabilization works on the bridge approaches. Bai Lamin Jobe, the Gambia’s Minister for Transport, Works and Infrastructure, commended Mike Feng and his colleagues for the good news, noting that despite the COVID pandemic, which slowed the pace of works, the project would likely be completed ahead of schedule. The Minister also noted that “according to various studies on successful projects, a critical factor which has been identified for such success is the number of meetings to deal with the challenges faced during implementation. The [Project Steering] Committee had six meetings altogether, and during these meetings, [it] was able to solve many problems which unfolded.” The Minister described the project as an important achievement in the annals of the Upper River Region, and the country at large. He said that “this project will serve as model for other projects in this country.” He also reminded the contractor of the absence of speed bumps on the newly constructed road, and the fact that the height of the road in some areas (such as the village of Kusong in Kantora) is making it difficult for the villagers to access the other side of their village. The contractor promised to fix the problem as soon as possible. Then, on April 28, 2021, the Chinese authorities again pledged to finish the project by July 15, 2021, a month before the originally expected completion date. However, Chinese Ambassador Ma Jianchun visited the project site on July 25, 2021 and stated that the contractor needed to be more efficient so it could finish the project and turn it over to the Gambian Government, which indicated the project was still in implementation. On October 9, 2021, the President of Gambia held an inagurual opening ceremony to celebrate the project's completion. At the project completion (road and bridge inauguration) ceremony, President Barrow thanked the Chinese Government for connecting URR north and south, finally bringing the country’s eastern end into the national highway network. He officially inaugurated the Basse-Fatoto Highway amidst cheering from a large crowd that gathered at the road's intersection. He then proceeded to cut the ribbon at the Chamoi Bridge, followed by the Suduwol and Fatoto Bridges. At the Fatoto Bridge, President Barrow drove a car across the bridge with First Lady Fatoumatta Bah-Barrow on the passenger seat, symbolizing an end to decades’ old use of boats and canoes to cross the river. The final ribbon cutting was at the main bridge connecting the Wulis in the north and Basse on the south of the river. There, President Barrow announced the official name of the Bridge – Samba Juma Bridge, a tribute to a benevolent boatman who for many years helped people cross the river. Then, on December 15, 2021, a project handover certificate was issued.

Additional details

1. This project is also known as the URR Road and Bridges Project, the URR Bridge and Road Construction Project, the Project of Road and Bridges Construction in URR, or the Basse-Fatoto-Koina Road Project, the Upper River Region Highway Bridge Project, and the Fatoto-Passimus Bridge and Basse-Wuli Bridge Projects. The Chinese project tittle is 冈比亚上河区公路桥梁项目 or 援冈比亚上河区公路桥梁项目. 2. It is unclear if any of the funding for this project was drawn from an RMB 300 million grant that Chinese Government pledged in September 2018 to fund agricultural mechanization and road infrastructure projects in the Gambia (captured via Project ID#56733). This issue warrants further investigation. 3. The project’s four main components are sometimes referred to as the Basse-Fatoto-Koina Road, the Basse-Wuli Bridge and link road, the Fatoto Bridge and link road, the Chamoi Bridge, and the Suduwol Bridge. 4. Some sources suggest that the project was officially completed on October 11, 2021 rather than October 9, 2021. This issue warrants further investigation.

Number of official sources

52

Number of total sources

75