Juba-Bor road upgrade expected to improve security

September 8, 2014 (BOR) – The UN peacekeeping mission to South Sudan (UNMISS) has started construction on the Bor-Juba road, a major transport and passenger route.

Speaking to the press in Bor, UNMISS state coordinator Hazel de Wet said that UNMISS engineers were committed to improving infrastructure, as well as promoting peace and development in the country.

“This road is the means by which products are carried between markets. It is a way that messages and messengers travel between towns,” de Wet said.

Bor town and other local markets in Jonglei have recently witnessed soaring prices due to bad road connections to the capital, Juba.

It is hoped that better roads connections in Jonglei would will contribute to lower prices, as well as improve security in the area.

“Prices get higher as products take longer to travel. People get poorer as results,” de Wet said.

A UNMISS contingent of Korean engineers will provide labour, equipment and fuel to complete the three-month project on the 204km stretch of road.

State minister for physical infrastructure John Amuor Kuol said the citizens of Jonglei state were impressed by the initiative of the Korean contingent, describing it as a much needed development project.

Meanwhile, the state’s deputy governor, Baba Medan, pledged to “build [a] strong relationship” with the Korean contingent in delivering better services to
the people of Jonglei state.

“Travellers will seize this opportunity to travel for three hours covering
a distance of 124km, which is being covered within 10 hours currently,” he said.

The government has also pledged to provide maximum protection for road workers and engineers throughout the entire construction period.

(ST)