HARARE, July 25 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe's road authority said Tuesday it now requires 148.8 million U.S. dollars for an emergency national road rehabilitation program, up from the initial 100 million announced in March.
Most of Zimbabwe's roads, bridges and associated infrastructure were damaged by heavy rains received in the 2016/17 rainfall season, leading the government to launch a national emergency road rehabilitation program in March.
This was after President Robert Mugabe had also declared the country's roads a state of disaster.
In an update on the rehabilitation works Tuesday, the Zimbabwe National Road Authority said the road repair works were being done in two phases, with 45.6 million dollars having so far been disbursements to road authorities under the first phase.
"The requirements for the program, initially estimated at 101.1 million dollars are now estimated at 148.8 million after taking into account additional requirements for road authorities," ZINARA said.
Of the 148.8 million, ZINARA will raise 100 million dollars through an infrastructure bond, while 15 million will come from Treasury and 33.8 million from the road fund administered by ZINARA.
ZINARA said early this month that it had so far raised 58.6 million dollars through the infrastructure bond.
The emergency road rehabilitation program is expected to run from March to October this year, according to a government timeframe announced in March.
Prior to the floods, most of the country's roads were already in a poor state owing to years of neglect.
However, government has been making efforts to upgrade major highways, and last year signed a multi-million dollar deal to dualize and rehabilitate the country's busiest 900-km highway, the Beitbridge-Harare-Chirundu road.
President Mugabe officiated at the ground breaking ceremony for the project in May, paving way for the project to start soon.
