ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE WORKS SET TO EXPAND IN GAROWE AND MOGADISHU UNDER PHASE II OF SOMALI URBAN RESILIENCE PROJECT
Mogadishu, 12th December — The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) Country Director Tim Lardner and World Bank Country Representative Hugh Riddell, met with Mogadishu Mayor Omar Mahamoud Mohamed (Omar Filish) and Mayor of Garowe Ahmed Said Muse today to discuss progress on the World Bank’s flagship infrastructure project in Somalia, the Somali Urban Resilience Project (SURP).
Worth over US$ 9 million, the SURP is Somalia’s first national test case for municipal infrastructure delivery and is financed by the World Bank through the Somalia Multi-Partner Trust Fund.
Phase I of the SURP which launched in August 2018, successfully delivered 4.9 kilometers of road in Garowe and 7.5 kilometers of road on Mogadishu, increasing access and economic activity in these regions.
A key partner of the project, the United Nations Office for Project Services has supported the project by providing technical assistance to Garowe Municipality and Benadir Regional Administration for the construction of roads.
Tim Lardner, UNOPS Somalia Country Director stated, “The SURP has been critical in supporting the Federal Government of Somalia and partners to build on urban resilience efforts, which are crucial to the development and economic stability of the country”.
Of the 21,830 km of roads in the country, it is estimated that only 2,860 km are paved (13 percent). As key population centres such as Mogadishu, Baidoa, and Kismayo experience rapid population growth due to changes in the country’s agro-pastoral economy and conflict and climate-related forced migration, the SURP has been pivotal in providing a roadmap for building resilience through infrastructure in Somalia.
Off the back of the success of phase I of the project World Bank Country Representative, Hugh Riddell announced the approval of phase II of the SURP, set to begin implementation in 2020.
Building on the ongoing Somalia Urban Resilience Project (SURP), phase II aims to enhance the resilience of select cities with a particular focus on supporting physical resilience by financing investments in priority urban infrastructure.
For media inquiries and more information on the United Nations Office for Project Services in Somalia, contact Alexis Stergakis at alexiss@unops.org.
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