This is a 66-kilometer road along Lake Kivu taken in Rwanda's Western Province on December 8, 2021 (drone photo). Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd.)
Kigali, 8 June (Xinhua) -- Communications: The "beautiful ribbon" in the lake and mountains -- China's construction of highways helps Rwanda's economic and social development
Xinhua News Agency reporter Ji Li
Located on the border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lake Kivu, Africa's tourist destination, is rich in natural resources and is like a shining pearl embedded in the African land. The lake is sparkling, peaceful and wide. The lakeside hills are rolling and covered with lush green vegetation.
This is a 66-kilometer road along Lake Kivu taken in Rwanda's Western Province on December 9, 2021 (drone photo). Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd.)
A few days ago, a reporter from Xinhua News Agency drove south from Kibuye City, Western Province, which is adjacent to Lake Kivu in Rwanda, and saw a flat two-way asphalt concrete road, hovering between hills, just like a beautiful ribbon winding around, connecting the lake and mountains with the town.
This road is the 66-kilometre road along the Kivu Lake built by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd. (China Road and Bridge). Construction began in 2013 and was completed in 2016, making it the main north-south corridor in western Rwanda and part of a multinational highway connecting neighbouring Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Guo Meng, general manager of China Road and Bridge Rwanda Office, said that the construction of this "eighteen bends of the mountain road" put forward extremely high technical requirements for the engineering team. First, the terrain is complex, and the amount of earthworks required to expand roads and treat steep slopes is large; Second, the foundation is weak and it is necessary to deal with the challenges of black cotton soil area; Third, the surrounding rainfall is large, which puts forward higher quality and progress requirements for the project.
This is a 66-kilometer road along Lake Kivu taken in Rwanda's Western Province on December 8, 2021 (drone photo). Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd.)
"In the past, that dirt road was bumpy and there were frequent car accidents; If you ride a motorcycle, the whole person will be covered in dust. Vincent Hatgekimana, a 64-year-old veteran carpenter involved in the project, recalls that the engineering team overcame difficulties and finally built the road, which reduced the travel time from five hours to one hour and 20 minutes, and greatly improved road safety and the environment.
It is understood that the completion of the project has further consolidated the good reputation of "Chinese quality, Chinese standard and Chinese speed" in the local area, and has become a benchmark project for Chinese enterprises to build in the region under the framework of the "Belt and Road", and won the China National Quality Project Award.
The area along Lake Kivu is Rwanda's key cash crop, and the completion of roads has also accelerated the export of agricultural products such as coffee and tea, while boosting tourism.
This is a 66-kilometer road along Lake Kivu taken in Rwanda's Western Province on December 9, 2021 (drone photo). Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd.)
Hatgekimana has been working in China Road and Bridge for 41 years and has participated in more than a dozen engineering projects. He told reporters that the road has a lot of traffic. In recent years, he has had relatives and friends set up shops along the highway, and his life has improved significantly. He himself has a stable income, enough to pay for the school fees of his 7 children. Not only that, but he also passed on the woodworking skills he learned from Chinese masters to more than 30 local apprentices.
According to statistics, the roads built by Chinese enterprises account for 70% of the total length of Rwanda's national highways. Since China Road and Bridge settled in Rwanda in 1974, it has been working hard for nearly 50 years and undertaking the construction of many roads. Among them, the 140-kilometer Kigali to Lusumo road was completed in June 1977 and is the only way for Rwanda to travel to the Tanzanian port city of Dar es Salaam. The road has earned the reputation of "African Model Road" for its outstanding engineering quality.
This is a 66-kilometer road along Lake Kivu taken in Rwanda's Western Province on December 8, 2021 (drone photo). Xinhua News Agency (Photo provided by China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd.)
In addition, the Rwandan national key projects undertaken by China Road and Bridge, such as the Kigali Municipal 36-kilometer Project, the Bugceira International Airport Road Upgrading Project, and the Kigali Municipal Road Reconstruction and Expansion Project, have played an important role in the upgrading of the appearance and transportation development of many Rwandan cities, greatly promoting the development of tourism, investment and commerce, and helping to realize the country's economic and social transformation strategy.