The coordination unit of the Emergency Territorial Development and Resilience Project organized a visit to the achievements of its activities in the commune of Koudougou, Center-West region, on Thursday October 24, 2024.
The World Bank (WB) and the Burki-nabè State support
the Emergency Territorial Development and Resilience Project (PUDTR). To ensure the proper execution of activities in the field, the WB carried out a supervision mission of the project’s achievements in the commune of Koudougou, Center-West region, on Thursday, October 24, 2024. This visit organized by the The project coordination unit is part of the 7th World Bank support mission for the implementation of PUDTR activities. Indeed, in this municipality, the team was able
visit school and health infrastructures, a crossing structure, etc. carried out by the project.
At the Wendpanga school, six classrooms were built with amenities (latrines, stores, etc.) in order to relieve student numbers. “We have two schools on this site, in each class we have more than 100 students. Staff management was a concern, because the teaching staff was available and we did not have rooms to accommodate all the students. With these new infrastructures, we have around sixty students per class,” indicated the head of the Koudougou 2 basic education district, Jean Oscar Zoma.
Providing quality education
the team then went to the South and Teeltaaba schools in the city of the red rider. At the Sud C school, six classrooms from CP1 to CM2 were built with the same amenities. At the Teeltaaba school, three classes were built with related infrastructure (latrines, stores, etc.) by the PUDTR in order to standardize the establishment which also has a plethora of students.
“In the classrooms we have numbers of 110 to 120 students per class which does not allow us to offer quality teaching,” informed the director of the Teeltaaba school, Beatrice Yaméogo. She thanked the actors of the project for the creation of this jewel allowing to reduce the number of people in the classrooms. “With the construction of this new building, we took from the old classes to constitute the school,” informed Ms. Yaméogo.
In addition to school infrastructure, the PUDTR intervenes in the field of health in the commune of Koudougou through several actions. The team visited the Health and Social Promotion Center (CSPS) in sector 7. There, the project built a maternity ward and rehabilitated the dispensary. This CSPS, which operates on solar energy thanks to the support of the PUDTR, also benefited from the construction of a hangar for those accompanying patients, a kitchen, an autonomous water station, etc. For the responsible for the Expanded Vaccination Program (EPI) of the CSPS of sector 7 of Koudougou, Drissa Siemdé, the construction of this infrastructure is a necessity. “There are buildings that date back several years. These works of the project will improve the health offer for the benefit of patients,” he insisted. Among the priority sectors of the project are road infrastructure and income-generating activities. To ensure their proper implementation, the supervision team went to Saria, a town located about twenty kilometers from Koudougou.
Facilitate traffic
A crossing linking Koudougou was built by the PUDTR through the Burkina Infrastructure Works Agency (AGETIB). “There was a time when we could not travel on this bridge. In case of rain, you had to turn around to avoid being swept away by the water. We now use it every hour,” rejoiced Albert Ouédraogo, a user of this road. Mr. Ouédraogo, who was going to the town of Koudougou, expressed his gratitude to the project stakeholders, because the bridge helps improve traffic on the Koudougou-Saria axis. He also hoped that these initiatives would continue because there are always villages to open up. Caroline Siemdé, who regularly frequents this section for her commercial activities, also recognized the interest of this work.
“I had suspended even my activities because the state of the road did not facilitate the transport of my goods,” she said.
The “Boayam” Women’s Cooperative (CFB) of Koudougou, which works in the processing of corn flour, received a visit from the “supervision team”. According to the cooperative’s treasurer, Pauline Mandy, the PUDTR supported the cooperative with equipment consisting of, among other things, a motorcycle taxi, a mill, barrels, buckets, tarpaulins, dryers, tables. She also specified that the CFB benefited from training sessions in financial management. “We are very moved by the support of the PUDTR, because their actions allow several women to manage their families, to ensure the education of their children…” she testified.
Activities in perspective
The head of the Central West PUDTR branch, Salifou Sawadogo, announced that other activities are in perspective. “We have some schools to standardize because there were three-class establishments with very high numbers. In total we have eleven infrastructures at the level of schools and CSPS, not counting the scuppers and the 15 autonomous water stations from which the municipality will benefit,” he underlined. Mr. Sawadogo confided that as part of the construction of road infrastructure, the commune of Koudougou will have nearly 150 kilometers of rural roads for which studies have already been completed. “The construction of a market is planned, the technical studies of the preliminary projects have also been examined,” assured the head of the PUDTR branch in the region. He said that the commune of Réo benefits from the support of the project in the same areas through the construction of schools, CSPS, a bus station, culverts and rural roads of around a hundred kilometers. He also suggested that the PUDTR intervenes in the municipalities of Sabou, Boura… through the construction of crossing structures. Mr. Sawadogo said he was confident of the quality of the infrastructure built because the monitoring of the projects was “exceptional”.
With a total cost of 473 million dollars or 260 billion 150 million FCFA, the PUDTR is financed by the World Bank and the Burkinabe government. The duration of the project is 5 years (2021-2025) with the objective of improving inclusive access of communities (including internally displaced people) in targeted areas to infrastructure, basic social services and food. The beneficiaries of the project are local authorities, vulnerable people, internally displaced people and their hosts, people with disabilities, the most vulnerable young people and rural women, etc. Its areas of intervention are the Boucle du Mouhoun regions, the East, the Center-East, the Center-West. Thanks to the additional funding, the PUDTR intends to extend its area of intervention to the 13 regions with a concentration in areas where the food crisis is worrying.
Aly SAWADOGO