Community Voices Playing Central Role in SIRAP’s Malaita Road Upgrades

Community Advisory Committees (CAC) have now been established for all road works under the Government’s Solomon Islands Roads and Aviation Project (SIRAP), which is being supported by the World Bank. These provide a core body to ensure community members are involved in the implementation and planning of road works that will benefit local communities, businesses, and families.

Consultations with three CAC in Malaita was completed last week by a team from the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (MID), the SIRAP Project Support Team, and Supervision Consultants. This was to support SIRAP road upgrades across a 21 kilometre stretch of the Malaita’s East Road.

Aligning with the Government’s National Transport Plan, these bodies will help with consultation and information sharing with communities in the MID run project.

Training was also provided to the Committees on safeguards, contractor’s obligations, construction phases, and monitoring and reporting procedures for community consultation plans. These plans aim to provide a process for stakeholder participation, including planning and design, consultation, awareness raising and monitoring; establish an easily accessible and effective grievance redress procedures; and ensure transparency in all project activities.

Allan Lilia, Acting Permanent Secretary of MID said, “the advisory committees will assist the Ministry in ensuring affected communities have real ownership and input into the works – which will ultimately work to support the sustainability of the upgrades.”

Apart from rehabilitation of the East Road, SIRAP and the Second Solomon Islands Roads and Aviation Project (SIRAP2) are also rehabilitating the 17 kilometre of North Road, constructing seven new bridges in Malaita (Koa, Bio1, Bio2, Kolofe1, Kolofe2, Su’u Harbor, and Bira Bridges), providing upgrades to Honiara and Munda Airports and Santa Cruz (Lata) Airfield, investing in air navigation systems in Makira-Ulawa and Temotu Provinces, and supporting regional airport maintenance.

End//

-press release