China to fund rehabilitation of West Coast Road

The Batalie bridge on the West Coast Road was destroyed by TS Erika

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has announced that China will be grant funding the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the West Coast Road, which was badly affected by Tropical Storm Erika, and work is expected to begin in the first week of April 2017.

Addressing a Town Hall Meeting held in Dublanc on Sunday, he said that he met with the Chinese Ambassador to Dominica, LU Kun on Friday evening to have plans finalized.

“Of course the West Coast Road benefits all of us who live on the West Coast and up to the north of the country and everybody in Dominica benefits from it, but more so those of us who live in the north and along the West Coast,” he said.

He said an agreement has already been signed with a contractor to construct the road.

“The contracting firm has been in Dominica for the last several weeks opening their bank accounts and setting up their offices and getting work ready,” Skerrit stated.

Skerrit said the project is a major piece of infrastructure that needs to be replaced and will entail the construction of three new bridges.

“This works will entail the construction of three new bridges, the one at Picard, the one at Batalie and the one at Macoucherie and a number of retaining walls and associated works,” he revealed. “So this is a major piece of infrastructure that we have to replace and we are very grateful to the People’s Republic of China for providing us with that very important grant to assist us in advancing and improving this road for all of us, so that we can get rid of these Bailey Bridges which can be affected by raging waters.”

Skerrit noted that no doubt the project will have a major impact on the economy of Dominica.

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27 Comments

  1. mexican
    March 29, 2017

    We want to hear the Chinese govt say they are funding the road not Skerro. U have a habit of using passport money to do work and claim is Chinese money. Chinese slave workers yes. but not Chinese money. Dominica Passport money.

  2. Anthony Ismael
    March 28, 2017

    The Idiot in me keeps wondering why are we constructing low lying bridges instead of Cable-Stay bridges arched high above these rivers in areas with high rainfall, where the river quickly and constantly overflows it banks?
    Then again, I’m just a simple idiot. :( :( :( :(

    • Me
      March 28, 2017

      You are not an idiot Anthony but you are too logical for this warped government of ours.

  3. UDOHREADYET
    March 28, 2017

    with all the rivers and bridges in Dominica… Dominicans that work in construction should take the initiative and become experts in bridge building and stop politicizing their work with politics and nonsense which have nothing to do with actual work!!

    • Toto
      March 29, 2017

      And who do you think built the bridges that are still standing? Think before you speak.

  4. Toto
    March 28, 2017

    Well, well this is a confirmation that our country has been mortgaged to the Chinese and you know what happens when you default on your mortgage to the bank. The bank will take your property.

  5. dissident
    March 27, 2017

    I saw Chinese doing surveys in that road last year……. around de area where de Culvert was being repaired near Dublanc!
    Correct me if I’m wrong but………. I thought I heard de PM say the very same tune last budget address!
    Finance minister was allocating about$41 million of CBI money!!!!!!
    Den I see de guy from North rebuilding culvert on a road de Chinese getting money to repair. I even thought de guy was sub contracted by dem Chinese to work!
    No engineer overseeing de man work!
    Next thing I see Chinese in de same area doing surveys!!!!!!!
    DEM CHINESE BEEN HERE LONG TIME!
    SOMETHING STINKS ABOUT THIS AND I HOPE IT EXPLODES!!!!!!!

  6. Chanter
    March 27, 2017

    Addressing a Town Hall Meeting held in Dublanc on Sunday, he said that he met with the Chinese Ambassador to Dominica, LU Kun on Friday evening to have plans finalized.

    He said an agreement has already been signed with a contractor to construct the road.

    “The contracting firm has been in Dominica for the last several weeks opening their bank accounts and setting up their offices and getting work ready,” Skerrit stated.

    What the heck is really going on in this country? plans to finalized … agreement already signed … bank accounts opened and offices set up …. what is really going on?

    Hurricane Skerritt continue to day parlay. The prayers of the people will vol ti jay you!!!

    • Just Thinking
      March 27, 2017

      I have the same questions. Some things don’t add up here. The PM said he met with the Chinese Ambassador on Friday evening to have plans finalized but an agreement had already be signed with a contractor to construct the road, That the contracting firm has been in Dominica for the last several weeks opening bank accounts, and setting up offices. So it appears the contractor was hand picked long ago and just waiting. Again the words of the PM that, “the contracting firm has been in Dominica for the last several weeks opening bank accounts, and setting up offices” suggest that the contracting firm is not local. Don’t we have competent enough contractors in Dominica to undertake such projects?

    • UDOHREADYET
      March 28, 2017

      constructing road and bridges are two different things. Also when and how the news gets reported by whom doesn’t always coincide with actual activities.

  7. Tony
    March 27, 2017

    Hello and good afternoon my people. Well it seems that our leader don’t have any confidence in our own people building our infurstructure. Is he saying we don’t have any civil engineer who is a builder or work for any builder in DA who can build such bridges and roads. The Government have engineers on staff and government employees who can do such work rather they keep giving contracts to companies from other countries and they are draining our resources . We keep seeing roads and bridges which were recently build but are washed away and the same people are being asked to rebuild such structures which are build to low and to close to the river bank. We must say this is not right or good for our county and we should be able to build such structures.

    • Mhm
      March 28, 2017

      This happens when we have local contractors more focused on pay and less focused on work quality. The length of time it will take the Chinese to do will be less than double the time it will take a local contractor to do.

      • Tony
        March 28, 2017

        To: Mhm

        Hello and good morning my people. Well I just spent a month in Dominica and I drove all over. I looked at the new bridge the Chinese build by the new market and I saw that concrete is falling into the river from the bridge. When such roads or bridges are built each batch of concrete should be tested for PSI to make sure it meet the recommendations of the civil engineer and am certain that wasn’t conducted. When our people build it might take longer but it They will build it properly ,just look at the well built homes in Dominica. We don’t let our money circulate among our people rather we allow foreign contractors to remove our resources. The Chinesse are doing what America and England did for years by giving loans but being the contractors and builders in that way the money stay in their hands but you end up owing them. So please open your eyes and understand how those thing work.

    • Anthony Ismael
      March 28, 2017

      Tony your thinking is too logical. If engineers considered what you proposed, we would build bridges arched high above these rivers and they would last a long time, instead of being constructed and reconstructed every two years or so. And furthermore, you eat the money of fools, by building sub-standard projects for them. Who cares? They don’t know the difference between good and bad work. :-P :-P :-P

  8. Just Thinking
    March 27, 2017

    I welcome the idea that the re-habilitation of the West Coast Road will be grant funded. However, I am concerned about Hon. Skerrit’s statement that, “an agreement have already been signed with a contractor to construct the road. “The contracting firm has been in Dominica for the last several weeks opening their bank accounts and setting up their offices and getting work ready,” Skerrit stated. according to Hon Skerrit there is already a contractor to construct the road, and it appears that the contractor is a foreign entity. Was there any tendering process? Apparently none because there was no publicity about any bidding for the road rehabilitation project. If there was then the process was not transparent. It looks like the said contractor was hand-picked for the project. Is that how government is supposed to operate.? We need a Freedom of Information Law in Dominica to force government entities to publicly disclose information which is in the public domain.

    • Mhm
      March 28, 2017

      Did you even read the article. It is a project GRANT-FUNDED by the Chinese government. Which means therefore that the Chinese sent their people. What they in turn will do is hire local persons to work on the project, use local equipment etc.

      • Just Thinking
        March 28, 2017

        Maybe you should get convex lenses, a magnifying glass or alternatively get some glass bottle and place it on your face to see better. Imagine you did not or cannot see the first sentence that I wrote. And people like you comment without even having an understanding of what is written. Re-read my comment again and you will see that my first sentence says, “I welcome the idea that the re-habilitation of the West Coast Road will be grant funded” You conveniently did not see that. Did you read what PM Skerrit said and the garbage statement you wrote? ” HE SAID AN AGREEMENT HAS ALREADY BEEN SIGNED WITH A CONTRACTOR TO CONSTRUCT THE ROAD “THE CONTRACTING FIRM HAS BEEN IN DOMINICA FOR THE LAST SEVERAL WEEKS OPENING THEIR BANK ACCOUNTS AND SETTING UP THEIR OFFICES AND GETTING WORK READY,” SKERRIT STATED. Does that sound like a local contractor to you?

    • zandoli
      March 28, 2017

      DNO, thanks very much for this much needed source of news to us who live outside Dominica. But I gotta tell you, you have also given a lot of foolish people a platform to assault our senses. Sometime I have to wonder if some people lack basic common sense.

      Why in heaven’s name would the Chinese government put out a project to tender when they are grant funding it. When you give money to a poor country, there are usually strings attached, some of which include, companies from your country are contracted to carry out the project. Is that so difficult to understand?

  9. Lang Mama
    March 27, 2017

    Before Erika the project did not have an impact on the economy. The economy got worse than it was before the west coast road was rehabilitated.
    When a person repeatedly lies to the same audience it shows that this liar has no respect for the people in the audience. The liar sees the people as beneath his/her standards

  10. March 27, 2017

    Looking forward to the rehabilitated road network!

  11. The Thinker
    March 27, 2017

    So,another major contract going to another OUTSIDE Contractor? Have we no DOMINICAN CONTRACTORS to carry out this work and keep the money in Dominica?

    • LifeandDeath
      March 27, 2017

      What money?..The Chinese fund their work and build it themselves..That’s a Rule..Say thanks to China!!

      • Tjebe fort
        March 28, 2017

        I say thank you for any help but don’t expect me to appreciate crap.

  12. Erasmus B. Black
    March 27, 2017

    As world history goes, no strong country has ever done anything for a smaller weaker country for free or because of the goodness of its heart. The Greeks built aqueducts and bridges to transfer their water, the Romans built bridges and roads to to transfer their goods, the UK is allegedly building prisons or promising to build big prisons in the Caribbean to house foreign criminals who have become a burden to them, the Chinese are allegedly building roads and bridges in Africa for alleged influence. The question now is “What do we still have left to offer? “

    • Mamosa
      March 27, 2017

      Land and more Land. China is looking for space to ease their over crowding. They already use our main Agricultural station to grow their food.

      Nothing is free.

  13. See what you do
    March 27, 2017

    Not CBI money? No more CBI money? CBI money finish man? Is it that CBI money got too dirty

    • DA girl
      March 28, 2017

      You find you making sense???? What CBI have to do with that. And that’s the thing with ignorant people eh. Everybody bawling, where the CBI money?! Use the CBI money, oh all of a sudden CBI have money. Don’t use the CBI money, oh it finish man?! There is no pleasing black people.Jeez man.

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