More than 800 farmers whose farms fall within the right of way of the Accra-Kumasi Expressway are expected to receive compensation as the government progresses with the preparatory works for the project.
So far, 469 farmers have received compensation ranging from about GH¢1,500 to GH¢350,000, based on valuation data provided by the Ministry of Roads and Highways.
Brigadier Jonas Wiafe, Director of Engineering Services of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), disclosed this at a ceremony at Kwaso in the Ejisu Municipality to officially hand over the cleared right of way for the expressway.
He said the compensation process was ongoing and assured affected farmers who were yet to receive payment that they would be reached.
“We have the required funds to make all those commitments,” he said.
Brigadier Wiafe said, significantly, no physical property was affected during the right-of-way clearing exercise.
“I must emphasise here, no physical property, that is buildings, whether mud houses or sandcrete, whether completed or uncompleted, was touched during the clearing operation,” he said.
He said the military engineers, therefore, concentrated on clearing vegetation and agricultural lands, including food crop farms, rubber plantations and oil palm plantations along the designated corridor.
The GAF was contracted through the Ministry of Defence by the Ministry of Roads and Highways to undertake pre-construction activities for the Accra-Kumasi Expressway.
Brigadier Wiafe said the military engineers had cleared 183.6 kilometres of the right of way, exceeding the original target of 175.6 kilometres by eight kilometres.
The assignment covered the 120-metre-wide roadway from Kilometer 13 in the Greater Accra Region to Kilometer 188 in the Ashanti Region.
He said the engineers also cleared up to 150 metres at some major intersections and undertook additional works in swampy areas, river lines and lands degraded by illegal mining.
According to him, the original plan was to treat and reclaim five kilometres of degraded land, but the team had treated, reclaimed and opened up 15 kilometres.
Brigadier Wiafe said the works formed part of the critical preparatory phase of the expressway project, supporting its feasibility and the initial and detailed engineering designs.
He said about 78 military engineers drawn from the 48, 49, 50 and 51 Engineer Regiments, and the Engineer Training School were deployed for the operation, supported by logistics, administrative and other personnel.
The engineers worked in three shifts, including at night and during rainy days, to complete the assignment within the targeted period.
Brigadier Wiafe said the team had set a target of 20 weeks but completed the exercise in 19 weeks.
He said the successful completion of the exercise demonstrated the GAF’s commitment to its constitutional mandate of supporting national development.
He expressed appreciation to the government for entrusting the military engineers with the assignment, saying the achievement had further demonstrated the Armed Forces’ capacity to serve as a reliable partner in national development.
By Yussif Ibrhaim, GNA