By Salome Gangire

Neno, March 26, Mana: Communities in Neno District have strongly opposed the Roads Authority’s (RA) decision to transfer 2,640 drums of 50/70 bitumen and 704 drums of Prime MC30 procured for Ntcheu-Neno-Mwanza Road project.

In a letter dated March 13, 2025 signed by RA Chief Executive Officer, Engineer Ammiel Champiti, the Authority informed Neno District Commissioner, Rosemary Nawasha, of its decision to relocate the bitumen purchased by the previous contractor, China Geo Engineering Corporation, whose contract was terminated by the RA citing expiry of the contract.

The Authority argued that the materials would become obsolete as they were not used by the time of the project.

During an interface meeting on Tuesday attended by Members of Parliament, ward councilors, traditional leaders, business people and civil society organisations, Neno Road Advocacy Chairperson, Samson Njolomole, voiced the community’s firm stand against RA’s decision.

“We will not allow the bitumen to be moved to another district. Neno is the only district in Malawi without a tarmac road. We have endured poor road conditions for too long and we had hoped this project would change that," Njolomole said.

He said instead of relocating the bitumen, RA should instruct a contractor to speed up the work and use the material before it expires.

Local business person, Elson Maere, expressed frustration over the district’s poor road network, saying the challenging road condition and costly transportation of goods which significantly affect business.

“We are suffering a lot. Transporting goods from Blantyre to Neno is very costly because of bad road network,” Maere said.

Ligowe Ward Councilor, Joseph Chiphaliwali, expressed concern saying RA should ensure that the bitumen is used in Neno rather than relocating the material from the district.

RA Regional Manager for the South, Engineer Flora Hauya, explained that the decision to transfer the bitumen was based on the project’s timeline, adding that there is provision of bitumen in the new contract.

She said according to the contractor, China Railway 20, surfacing works on the road are scheduled to begin in July 2025, after the bitumen’s expiration date in June 2025.

“The supervising consultant has informed the contractor that the bitumen will expire before surfacing works commence. Given that this is an imported material and a significant financial investment, we must use it before it becomes waste,” Hauya said.