A COMPREHENSIVE list of infrastructure and development projects needs to be regularly produced detailing repairs and improvements about to take place, local authorities say.

The chairpersons of Bahrain’s three municipal councils and Capital Trustees Board are urging all ministries and government bodies to provide information with start and finish times, exact locations, as well as details of any road closures and detours.

Muharraq Municipal Council chairman Abdulaziz Al Naar said local authorities had to deal with the public directly and were often caught unaware themselves.

“Just a few months ago, I was woken up by cranes and diggers near my house,” he said, “and, even as a council chairman, I had not been informed about the project’s start time, the duration of work, or road closures and detours.

“I made numerous calls before getting to the bottom of the matter. It turned out to be the beginning of work to turn the Old Muharraq Suq into a commercial boulevard, formally announced 18 months earlier.

“People forget about what they have eaten a week before, so how could they recall details about a project that former councillors were informed of in early 2022?

“Everyone was trying to reach me, sending me messages on social media, because they thought I should be aware of what’s going on around me. I wish I had been updated.”

Southern Municipal Council chairman Abdulla Abdullatif admitted to facing similar challenges.

“We see workers with shovels and we don’t know what the contractor is working on – road repairs, sewage works, water, electricity, or installing telecom networks,” he said.

“We need an up-to-date schedule of projects so we can keep people in our communities informed.”

Northern Municipal Council chairman Dr Sayed Shubbar Al Wedaie said communication is currently too haphazard.

“Perhaps a rolling updated electronic list of works could solve the problem,” he said.

“Sometimes we get a list of projects and sometimes not.

“Also, MPs should refrain from taking over our responsibilities and duties, which are not legislative-related, so we could remove any confusion whenever there are planned projects on the way.”

Capital Trustees Board chairman Saleh Tarradah hopes the concerned government authorities can unite to improve communication at a local level.

“There is nothing secret,” he said. “It would be nice to be informed about what to expect before anything takes place so, in return, we could update local families.

“Having these lists would also help us in the process of accountability, follow-up and progress.”

More than 50 mega projects, worth millions of dinars, are set to be rolled out in the coming months giving a much-needed boost to the country’s development and infrastructure.

The projects in the housing, education, health, digitalisation and artificial intelligence fields will also significantly improve the quality of services.

The Works Ministry said improvement works on Al Fateh Highway between Tarafa Bin Al Abd Aveune and Shaikh Daij Avenue necessitate the closure of one lane in stages and two lanes will be provided for southbound traffic movement during weekdays. The closure will be effective from today until Thursday.

 

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