Several Liberians, especially those in areas where the National Road Fund has made a great impact have lauded President George M. Weah for the construction of roads in several part of the country since his ascendency as President of Liberia in 2018.
Many of the beneficiaries who spoke to this paper said their communities have benefitted immensely from the smart leadership vision of the Liberian leader. “President George Weah’s visionary leadership role has led to the construction of more roads and bridges across the country, through the National Road Fund of Liberia-NRF,” they proudly said.
It can be recalled that President Weah in 2018, said that he would ensure that the National Road Fund get the needed support through legislation to make all of the petroleum companies importing gas into the country comply with the collection of the twenty-five cents on each gallon of gas as a means of supporting the construction of roads in the country.
Since 2018, the National Road Fund of Liberia has been transparently managing the fund and working with the relevant Ministries mostly the Ministry of Public Works to construct roads within Montserrado and other parts of the country.
“I think this aspect of the President’s vision should be commended; this is what past leaders failed to do. Some past governments had huge international support but did nothing towards helping the road fund,” Mr. Sylvester Smith, a resident of Kebah road in Barnesville told a team of reporters who went to take a look at some of the projects in the districts over the weekend. Kebah is one of the areas that benefitted from the National Road Fund projects.
In 2018, President Weah told Liberians that his government will build a coastal highway and connect every county capital, a commitment that is becoming a reality through the funding of the NRF and the securing of loans.
With funding from the National Road Fund of Liberia, feeder roads maintenance and rehabilitation works were fully supported namely, Palala to Zoweinta road, Gbonota to Bletanda in Bong County. Other areas where the Government makes impactful interventions on road connectivity include the maintenance of Clay Island Bridge, Brewerville Bridges, Du-River Bridge in Margibi, Bentol Bridge among others.
Additional road intervention by NRF is Chucky Taylor Road, Voka Mission Road, Logan Town Broad Street, Chubor Road, Buchanan Fair Ground, Rehab Community Road among others. The NRF also funded the asphalt pavement of St. Michael Town, Hall Patience Shop Road, Dry Rice Market to Johnsonville, Banjor Community Road, Nickley Town, among others.
Speaking to a cross-section of Liberians at the Coca-Cola Factory Community in Paynesville, a Motorcyclist, Joesph Tabolo said President Weah has done great improvement in constructing roads and improving it with streetlights.
According to Tabolo, the various road projects in Paynesville which have been paved by the Liberian Government through the taxes that are being managed by the National Road Fund worth commendation.
Also speaking, Victoria Davids, a student at the University of Liberia praised President George Weah for appointing a visionary woman, Mrs. Joseta Neufville-Wento as Chief Executive Officer of the National Road Fund of Liberia.
According to her, within a short time as CEO of NRF, Mrs. Wento has been able to launch a three-month internship program with the objective of expanding the entity by incorporating a comprehensive knowledge development program thus, enhancing the value of the technical workforce involved in their duties.
Recently during the launch of a three-month internship program of the NRF, CEO Wento noted that the program became a reality after an in-depth brainstorming and discussions among management and other relevant stakeholders including the University of Liberia, the Engineering Society of Liberia, the Liberian Association of Architects and private construction companies.
She said the initiative aims to promote the NRF among the people and give back to society, especially to students currently enrolled at various universities seeking internship opportunities.
