Amanuel Tesfay, Nov 12, 2008
The Government established an Emergency Reconstruction Program (ERP) in mid 2000, to facilitate rehabilitation and reconstruction programs.
The program mainly focused on the reconstruction of the destroyed and damaged socio-economic infrastructure to ensure the resumption of basic services. Since the beginning of the program, many roads, houses, bridges, schools, hospitals, agricultural infrastructure and other service rendering institutions have been reconstructed or repaired.
So far, tremendous rehabilitation works have been accomplished at a cost of 112 million dollars in both socio-economic and social welfare aspects.
About 300 kms of roads that cost more than 50 million dollars were constructed. These include Teseney-Telatasher, Azhara-Afabet, Abrara-Afabet-Maemide, Afabet-Felket-Naro, Kieru-Kerkebet….. Bridges in Teseney, Kerkebet, Awgaro and Kulukun were rebuilt.
The war affected hundreds of thousands of people, mostly in Gash-Barka and Debub regions. These displaced people have been depending on the Government’s assistance for their existence. The ERP has rehabilitated more than 70 thousand people in different sectors. About 22 thousand people were rehabilitated through saving and Micro-credit scheme and most of the rest were rehabilitated through interest free credit.
To improve the war damaged agricultural sector, the Emergency Reconstruction Program established agricultural projects at a cost of more than 40 million dollars. The objective of such projects is to help the victims of war and drought increase their food production. The projects use modern agricultural technology that would also step up modern agriculture in those areas.
Similarly, successful soil and water conservation and forestation activities at a cost of more than 74 thousand Nfa were conducted as part of the program. Modern fertilizers, better seeds, and agricultural instruments were provided to farmers. In addition, more than 8 thousand farmers took training on modern agricultural system.
The ERP also works on the development of the war damaged electricity supply infrastructure. Rebuilding Hirgigo power plant, designing electricity plans in Teseney, Barentu, Adiquala, Adikeyih, Senafe … were some of the major projects. The Program also supplies most of the instruments for rural electrification schemes.
The rehabilitation program has been successful, thanks to the political commitment of the Government, its self-reliant policy and the hard working people and their genuine partners.
