Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Transport and Communications Minister Brian Mushimba has defended the 17-year concession agreement signed by government through the Road Transport and Safety Agency with the Intelligent Mobility Solutions to enhance road safety in Zambia, saying it was done in a transparent manner.
Mr Mushimba has told a media briefing that the project was advertised in the print media for a period of one month, and five competing bids were received and evaluated, where Intelligent Mobility Solutions was awarded the concession to implement the advanced road safety management solutions and services.
He says the project is at no cost to government, but that the concessionaire will provide vehicle inspection centers, border tolling facilities, high speed weight in motion nodes to reduce overloading and road safety enforcement equipment.
Mr. Mushimba says the company will invest in excess of US$500 billion in the project.
He states that the company will be given time to recover the money, after which the RTSA will fully take control of the project.
He however, states that RTSA will still maintain its core mandate of regulation, tax education and collection of road tax.