The World Bank (WB) has already made available $200 million of the $400 million needed to rehabilitate National Road number 1, the Minister of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources said today.

The first phase of the works will cover the Inchope-Gorongosa-Caia, Chimuara-Nicoadala and Rio Lúrio-Pemba sections. The work is expected to start in the second half of next year.

"The first issue was really to secure the funding. A part of it is already guaranteed. And, at the latest, in the second half of next year, 2023, we will start with the works," assured Carlos Mesquita.

Feliciano Dias, President of the Order of Mozambique Engineers, is willing to work with the Government to include national engineers in the rehabilitation of the EN1.

"In this country, according to the legislation, only the engineer who is a member of the order and has his status regularized. All the others are engineering graduates. We have our register of who the engineers are in our country, and if there is a request from the government we will share this information," he said.

The statements were made on the sidelines of the VI Engineering Congress of Mozambique and IX Luso-Mozambican Congress. The event, which will last four days, takes place under the theme 'Challenges of Engineering in Development Cooperation and Debate Climate Change.

Last year alone, the government made available about nine billion meticais to rehabilitate public road and water infrastructures, among others destroyed by natural disasters.

The Minister said he has no doubt that the works to be done on the EN will be of high quality. "In fact, we are using methodologies that allow us to make a more adequate attack and with more resistance," assured Mesquita.