A giant white VIP marque was visible from a couple of kilometres away, and heavy plant machinery lined-up on the notorious A-3 roadside in Mathangwane.
An excitable crowd had already packed the open tent, and sat patiently waiting for the arrival of President Mokgweetsi Masisi.
The occasion at the open space in front of The Pond bar is the groundbreaking ceremony of the reconstruction of the 200km Francistown/Nata road.
In 1974, Botswana’s first President, Sir Seretse Khama, performed a similar groundbreaking ceremony in Mosetse village, to mark the construction of what would be known as the A3 Road that connected the north and Chobe District.
This 50-year-old road, however, has been in the news for all the wrong reasons.
President Masisi admitted in Mathangwane that the A3 has become a national, regional and international concern, with too many accidents claiming far too many lives.
Most notably, this includes last year’s horror crash, when 23 innocent souls lost their lives on 1st June, 2023 after a truck ploughed head-on into a sprinter combi near the Marapong turn-off.
With the promise of a state-of-the-art road, a dual carriageway from Francistown to Sebina, and wider two lanes from Sebina to Nata, residents of villages along this road have expressed their excitement and cannot wait for the earthmoving machines to roar to life.
This road has been a long time coming.
The reconstruction of the road will have a positive impact on the village’s economy.
One of the biggest challenges we have in Nata is unemployment.
I expect people from the village, even as far as Zoroga, even Sepako, Maposa and Manxotai, to be employed.
The more people employed means less crime.
We’re really thankful.
The quality of the road promised by the President means we might even see an influx of tourists, which benefit our people selling artefacts, and hoteliers.
It may have taken longer than we had expected, but finally there’s movement, the road will be constructed.
I trust President Mokgweetsi Masisi to deliver, and not just that but to give us a quality road in record time like he stated in Mathangwane and Nata.
This road is a priority, and no one can play politics with such a serious matter.
The bypass from Mandunyane is coming up, and the A3 will also be delivered as promised in the ruling party manifesto.
As the Branch Manager at Nata Choppies, I expect an increase in the number of customers coming into our shop.
With better roads, I also anticipate an influx of tourists, which means increased chances of clients coming to our shop.
I’ll be targeting employees of the construction company on the road.
I’ve been operating on the roadside since January, and I cant wait for the construction of the road to commence as there’ll be more movement.
My biggest concern, however, is that we might be forced to make way for the heavy machinery.
That’d be detrimental to my business.
This is a major road that eventually branches off to Maun and Kasane.
The reconstruction of this road will employ a lot of our unemployed youth.
I can’t wait for the earthworks to start.
My business is specifically targeting the roadside market, and I believe I’m in a perfect spot to reap the rewards.
We’ve been waiting for this good news, and I speak for everyone when I say we’re excited.
This is a welcome development.
This road has killed a lot of people, left a lot of people disabled.
We can blame the cars’ road worthiness or negligence, but the fact remains we still needed a well-maintained open road.
Remember, the busier the road, the higher the chances of accidents.
The A3 is an international road and we need to take care of it.
We receive it with open arms.
I’m happy that there’ll be a bypass from Mandunyane, to deal with the congestion problem.
I still, however, have to caution drivers that dual lanes do not mean we should speed recklessly.
As the Councillor in Mosetse, I know the frustration of our people with regards to this road.
I’m happy that there was a groundbreaking.
However, I’m much concerned about implementation.
We were promised this road in 2018, and the President was on record stating he had secured a loan from the Chinese government.
Six years later, we still don’t have a road.
The A3 should’ve been a priority, and the big yellow machines should be busy building road.
It is a good thing that is coming a little late.
All along, we’ve known that the road needed attention.
When the President took over, he promised to build the road, and told the nation that he had secured a loan from China.
This is electioneering.
We’d be happy if groundbreaking meant the actual construction work is beginning, not what we witnessed last Monday.
As it is right now, we may have another delay after the elections.
