Second Bridge Over Wouri River: Economic Implications

Second Wouri River Bridge, An Economic Booster

By Ernest Ndukong

Bridges are constructed considering their function, the nature of the terrain, the material and financial dispositions available. They are intended to span physical obstacles to provide and facilitate passage over these physical impediments.

The present 1 800 meters long Wouri Bridge, constructed about sixty years ago, entertains over 40,000 vehicles on a daily basis. At the time of its building, about 2 000 vehicles were using the bridge a day. Thus, the wear and tear cannot be established figuratively, due to the magnitude of excess usage. A new bridge is, therefore, inevitable.

France will contribute in loan about 87 percent of the FCFA 100 billion-worth project to build another bridge over the Wouri River. The bridge will have 2x2 road lanes and 1 railway lane in 5 lots.

Information released indicates that the functionalities chosen for the new bridge are; to ensure a better traffic flow, thus, limiting traffic congestions; enable the safe movement of pedestrians and cycles; withstand a two-way railway line, replace the old bridge in the medium term, be compatible with the various projects related to by-pass and to eventually enable one phasing of the execution.

The construction will provide some Cameroonians with a source of income when they would be employed both as skilled and unskilled labour.

The free flow of traffic in and out of Douala will not only facilitate the delivery of commodities and on time, but it will, equally, increase the number of appointments fulfilled. Many have testified how they lost money as a result of missed appointments because they were trapped (like miners) in congestion at the ‘famous’ Bonaberi Bridge.

The localities to be served include the industrial area of Bonaberi and Douala, the West, Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon, and also neighbouring countries like Chad and Central Africa Republic.

What, however, still remains a mystery, as is always the case, is when the loan of over FCFA 85 billion would be repaid and at what interest rate. Normally, lenders establish their rates and terms, but little or nothing has been heard about this multi-billion francs loan.

It was equally rumoured that a Chinese company had a cheaper offer for the project but it was signed in preference for the French. Reasons are best known by Cameroon authorities. In the same chitchat, it is observed that the Chinese offer was rejected because of the non-durable nature of their products.

It should be noted that, despite the numerous loans and debt relief packages from France, who are our colonial parents, reports still put Germany at the top of bilateral donors to Cameroon.

The German Ambassador to Cameroon, H.E. Reinhard Buchholz, on July 6, revealed that Cameroon and Germany would soon sign a new convention that would cover three years of development assistance amounting to about FCFA 50 billion. He added that Cameroon remains one of Germany’s most favoured bilateral partners. A similar amount was invested in Cameroon in 2010.