Guinea
In 1992 the National Rural Infrastructure Project, aiming at rehabilitating about
2000 km of feeder roads, started with World Bank support. The ILO
prepared a project component ("Programme Pilote des Routes de Desserte")
for the rehabilitation of some 160 km of roads by local contractors using labour-based/light
equipment supported methods. The ILO further helped to set up a major training
programme for supervisory staff and small contractors. The project concentrated
its activities in four selected prefectures. A national feeder road maintenance
system was tested under this project. The ILO technical assistance team
comprised a Chief Technical Adviser, a Training Adviser and three National
Engineers.
The World Bank financing ended in early 1995. Since then, an ILO-assisted
feeder roads rehabilitation and maintenance project (GUI/94/01M/CEE) has been
operating under the infrastructure development component of the European
Development Fund Programme for Guinea. This project continued in the direction
of creating sustainable job opportunities through enterprise development. Local
labour-based contractors were involved and provided with skill development and
business opportunities. Thirteen small-scale enterprises specialised in the
execution of labour-based road works were formed. These enterprises proved to
have a capacity to rehabilitate 260 km of rural roads in one year. They grouped
into an association and started promoting themselves.
The agreement with the European Union expired at the end of 1998, and options
for a further involvement of the ILO in the implementation of EIIP programmes in
this country were discussed with concerned government and donor
representatives. The EU delegation in Conakry expressed the intention to
continue the collaboration with the ILO during the next 5-year phase of their
Guinea country programme. The negotiations on this will be finalized in the
third quarter of 1999.
At the request of the Government, an ILO mission was fielded during the
second half of 1999 to formulate an Employment Policy Unit, which advises
the Government on how to promote employment in mainstream investment programmes.
This unit is posted in the Finance and Planning Ministry. The mission was organised in cooperation with the
ILO Subregional Office in Dakar.
Further reading
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