Malawi plans to introduce new measures that will see contractors imprisoned if they produce substandard roads, a cabinet minister has warned.
Transport and Public Works Minister Jacob Hara on Wednesday deployed the poor standard of work done by some of the companies engaged by the government to carry out road construction and rehabilitation.
“It is important that roads and other infrastructures that are constructed and upgraded can withstand the weather and are of high standard,” Hara told journalists, adding that those consultants and contractors who produce substandard work would be prosecuted in future.
The Malawi government has, with support from donors, embarked on a project to rehabilitate roads across the country, most of which have become unusable due to years of lack of repairs.
There has, however, been an outcry over the quality of some of the work, with some of the rehabilitated or newly constructed roads developing potholes soon after the contractors have left the site.
According to the minister, his ministry would soon acquire equipment to test the quality of the roadworks before the contractors are paid.
JN/APA