Minister of Transport and Public Works says construction of the Lakeshore Road will commence soon as contractor China Railways 20 has already mobilised the required resources.
Jacob Hara said the road is in a very bad state and needed attention years ago.
He has however bemoaned vandalism of planks at one of the bridges along the road on Lipsozi River where motorists are asked to pay community members who repair the bridge.
“Malawians let us be patriotic and guard our infrastructure against vandalism, for ages vandalism has cost us billions of Kwachas, this malpractice needs to stop,” Hara lamented.
He said the government has ordered the contractor to repair it before major construction works on M5 Road start.
The minister advised Malawi Police Service to deploy officers who will be providing security and check against vandalism.
“Overloading is also a big challenge that is compromising the lifespans of our infrastructure and strength of our bridges, this one will soon be a thing of the past because we are putting up a weighbridge, at Dwangwa,” said Hara.
The first phase of the M5 Road Project involves the construction of a 60-kilometer stretch between Kaphatenga in Salima and Benga in Nkhotakota.
The Lakeshore Road is one of the strategic roads, especially to the country’s tourism industry besides farming and agriculture.
