$200m city project stalls

The construction of the long-awaited public commuter terminal and commercial complex in the capital Kigali have been delayed further, weeks after work had been scheduled to start.Developers had promised to immediately begin construction after Prime Minister Dr Pierre Damien Habumuremyi visited the scene to get acquainted with the progress of the project.According to the project developers, the US$200 million project that was supposed to be erected on the grounds of the former Kigali Central Police Station in Muhima, is at a standstill because of several changes in the plans. The first phase of the project, a public commuter terminal, was supposed to be completed this month. However, there is no activity at the construction site. When contacted, Alphonse Nizeyimana, the Kigali Vice-Mayor in charge of Finance and Economic Development, said the designers need to modify the master plan because the one which was designed in early 2005, was in contravention of the new Kigali City Master Plan. “We are looking at new designs that are compatible with the city master plan. Negotiations are ongoing with the developers and designers, but the changes will only affect the buildings, not the park terminal,” Nizeyimana disclosed.Nizeyimana maintained that an ultra-modern commuter terminal, which includes drainage systems and roads that will also consist of flyovers connecting to the upper city centre, will be completed in June this year.When The New Times contacted John Gatarayiha, the Managing Director of NPD Cotraco that was supposed to construct roads around the area, drainage systems, a terminal and retaining walls, he said they would have completed the construction if they had been given a contract. “We were on track at the beginning, but we were later halted without explanation. We had requested the proprietors to give us at least 20 percent advance, which they have not fulfilled up to now,” said Gatarayiha. “They blame us in the media that we are the ones delaying the project yet it’s them who are not meeting their obligations”. The news has not struck a chord with public transport operators in Kigali City who been decrying lack of ample parking space in the city centre. The project, set on a seven hectare piece of land, will include shopping malls, a plaza, apartments, hotels, hospitals and restaurants and a commuter terminal of international standards.We expect to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Monday next week,” Sekoko Hatari, one of the project’s proprietors, said. Other shareholders include Ugandan tycoon Sudhir Ruparelia and his wife Jyotsna.

National

$200m city project stalls