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Kitgum, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A Chinese firm, China Railway 18 Bureau Group Co Ltd has been approved as the contractor to undertake 2.9km road construction under Uganda Support to Municipal Infrastructure Project-USMID.
This was after the contractor emerged as the best-evaluated bidder during a three weeks’ long evaluation exercise for the first phase of the road construction project funded by The World Bank held in Gulu City.
Alfred Alexis Abonga, Kitgum Municipal Council Engineer disclosed on Monday that the firm defeated three other contractors. They are Zhongmei Engineering Group Ltd and Chongquing International Construction Corporation-CICO that presented high quotations and Sea Tape For Trade & Investment Co Ltd that failed to meet the requirement for technical personnel.
He says the contractor had a reasonable quotation within their budget presented high experience in the related field, provided the minimum required qualified personnel and capacity to readily execute the contract with available equipment.
Abonga says the Municipal Council has already advertised the best-evaluated bidder notice and only waiting for elapse of the 14 days’ mandatory period for feedback before the offer is forwarded to the solicitor general for clearance.
According to the procurement guidelines, once the solicitor General has issued clearance, the Municipal Council will sign a contract with the company and hand over the site.
Abonga says the municipal council is now left with the approval of a consultant firm that will supervise the road construction.
Already the first bid on the financial proposal has been submitted by the consultancy firms whose names have been held and evaluation completed while the second bid on the technical proposal is yet to be opened for evaluation according to Abonga.
The roads approved for construction in the first phase include Janani Luwum, Lakidi, Philip Adonga, Kitgum Road, Tom Apila all in Central Division, Oneka Road, and Aya Hellen Dean in Pandwong Division.
Kitgum Municipal Council Mayor Walter Livingst Too-roma says that the infrastructural development will benefit the transformation of Kitgum and its inhabitant.
Too-roma advised the public and political leaders to have a positive attitude and embrace the project.
“Development is inevitable and comes at any time, now that it has come, people should support it, leaders come and go and as we go, we advise the local community and the new leaders coming to take over office should ensure the dream continues,” Says Too-roma.
Uganda Radio Network has also established that Comptran Engineering & Planning Associates, a consultancy firm from Ghana that designed the first phase of the roads has now finalized the architectural design of the second phase of the road construction. The architectural designs are expected to be presented to the Municipal Officials this week for perusal.
The roads include Omony Ogaba, Lagoro and Lamola among others.
Actual construction works under phase one of the USMID project in Kitgum Municipality was meant to kick off by June last year but suffered setbacks over the outbreak of Covid-19.
Kitgum Municipal Council has so far received 11.5 Billion Shillings from the government, part of the 25 billion shillings it’s expected to receive to execute the first phase of the road construction.
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