Work is set to resume on the Juba-Rumbek road six months after the project was put on hold after being washed away by flash floods amid accusations of a poor design and shoddy workmanship.
Speaking during the pre-resumption launch on Tuesday in Juba, the Vice President in charge of infrastructure, Taban Deng Gai, said President Salva Kiir prioritized oil money for infrastructure development in the country.
“The directive of his excellency the president is that the oil from greater Unity State is for development while the oil from northern Upper Nile is for our running costs, the salaries and other urgent issues of the government but the oil from greater Unity is for development. We think it is enough for development not only for Rumbek road or Juba-Malakal road but other roads,” Taban said.
He added, “But we want a partner, a partner that advances us money and we meet the conditions of that money. This road must be delivered with quality, not just a road, but a quality road. We don’t want to see the color of the money from the oil fields of Bentiu but we want to see roads, we want to see airports, we want to see cities, we want to see universities, these are the arrangements we shall be discussing with our partners.”
The Chinese ambassador to South Sudan, Hua Ning said the government of China is willing to support many development projects in South Sudan.
“The Chinese government is willing to build a high-quality road for the people of South Sudan. It took three decades for China to build a good road and stable network,” Ambassador Ning said.
Ning added that despite natural and environmental challenges, he insists China will continue to work with South Sudan in infrastructural development.