DILI, 07 november 2022 (TATOLI)—Minister of Public Works (MoPW), Abel Pires guarantees that the construction process for the Raikotu to Tasitolu road crossing will be completed before the launch of the Tibar Port.
The port of Tibar, which was built by Timor Port and Bollore, will be inaugurated at the end of November, but the road construction process, which is the most important part of the port, has not yet been completed.
“The construction of the road from Raikotu to Tasitolu is now going well and will be completed soon, only asphaltum remains. We make sure that before November 30, it will be completed, “Abel Pires said at the National Parliament, this Monday.
It was explained that the Raikotu to Tasitolu road crossing itself is located at the Dom Aleixo Administrative Post, Dili Municipality with a distance of 680 meters which is directly owned by the national company Jonize.
Abel Pires explained that the road construction process from the Nicolau Lobato Roundabout to Tasitolu was divided into two different packages, such as the roundabouts to Raikotu and Raikotu to Tasitolu.
“From the roundabout to Raikotu, we are still in negotiations because this is part of the Loan Fund with the ADB (Asian Development Bank),” he said.
The distance across the roundabout to Raikotu is about 1.2 kilometers, which is planned to use the ADB loan fund of around $5 million.
However, to obtain the Loan Fund, the Government must fulfill several conditions such as environmental permits, and also solve social problems, one of which is the Colégio São Miguel Arcanjo (CSMA) Raikotu school which is currently still in the negotiation process.
He conveyed that there was still one way out besides the ADB Loan Fund, the Government could use the Infrastructure Fund that had been provided, but the Ministry of Finance had to carry out further negotiations with ADB.
“We can use the Infrastructure Fund and we are working on this in coordination with the Ministry of Finance because they are government agencies that interact directly with ADB for negotiations and we hope that they can be resolved later,” he said.
Previously, the road from Nicolau Lobatu Roundabout to Tasitolu with a distance of 2 kilometers along with packages from the Tibar – Tasitolu crossroad, was managed by the Chinese international company Wuyi, with a project budget of more than $12 million.
The duration of the project work starts from February 28, 2017, to October 2019, and currently, the national company is continuing the management in some places that have not been completed.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Nelia B.
