Ghana adopts Japanese technology for road maintenance
A team of experts from Japan has trained its Ghanaian counterpart on the road maintenance technology as part of a four-year project
Ghana has adopted a Japanese artificial intelligence to enhance road maintenance in the country.
The dynamic response intelligent monitoring system makes it possible for engineers to use their smartphones to evaluate the quality of road after construction or repair work by accurately estimating the profile of the road.
The device is installed on the dashboard of a vehicle and while driving. The user is able to obtain data on the maintenance activity on the road.
A team of experts from Japan has trained its Ghanaian counterpart on the technology as part of a four-year project dubbed: “Project on Capacity Building for Road and Bridge Management,” financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The team, under the auspices of the Ministry of Roads and Highways (MRH), held a technical seminar in Accra on Tuesday to finalise the outputs of the project.
The project, which commenced in 2019 and ended this year, built the capacities of the MRH and its agencies in the management of roads and bridges in Ghana.
The Japanese team also trained their Ghanaian counterparts on the use of a new type of pre-mixed cold mix asphalt known as EXCEL Patch, which is able to patch roads during the rainy season and does not require heating.
Speaking to journalists at the meeting, Rita Ohene-Sarfo, the director of policy and planning at the MRH, said the project has helped the ministry to review its design and maintenance manuals for roads and bridges to conform to emerging techniques.
She said “Now the volume of water has increased so our discharge levels, our culverts, bridges and everything and even our materials [have changed]. We have short-term rains but the impacts are very high. We have designed all of that.”
Ohene-Sarfo said the Japanese technology for road maintenance was given to Ghana “free of charge.”
She said the new system will reduce the time spent on its road assessment and enhance the accuracy of data collected on the field.
Ohene-Sarfo said, “We used to do a lot of walking in identifying our maintenance [spots]. We have a machine that identifies what we call the roughness index. Now, with this technology, all we need is a smartphone and even when engineer is going to site, he can be doing his maintenance assessment.”
She appealed to JICA to support the ministry to review its technical specifications to match and support the effective implementation of its updated manuals.
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