48 ENGINEERS REGIMENT RECEIVED COMSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT FROM MOD (Centre Spread)

4/26/10
Story: Mary Mensah
THE Ministry of Defence (MoD) yesterday handed over construction equipment to the 48 Engineers Regiment to enhance the execution of various construction projects the unit is currently undertaking.
They include two graders, two payloaders, two back hoe diggers, four tipper trucks and one roller.
Presenting the equipment at a ceremony in Accra, the Minister for Defence, Lt-General J. H. Smith (retd), said the gesture formed part of the government's promise of improving the standards of the Ghana Armed Forces and, to a larger extent, the country as a whole.
He said in his State of the Nation Address, President John Evans Atta Mills promised to establish a new Engineers Regiment in the northern sector of the country to help take up engineering commitments in that area and help facilitate the government’s infrastructure development agenda.
He said that also entailed equipping the 48 Engineers Regiment to become a more vibrant construction-oriented unit in pursuance of the socio-economic development plan of the country.
Lt-Gen Smith said the regiment had made a great impact in the Afram Plains with the construction of feeder roads and various projects in Sefwi Wiawso and its environs.
He hinted that the regiment had been tasked to submit proposed designs for a pilot project to construct classrooms for deprived communities, adding that various proposals were also far advanced with the Ministry of Roads and Highways and the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing to acquire more contracts for the regiment.
The Commandant of the regiment, Lt Col Mohammed Mustapha, said the regiment had the capability and human resource but was not adequately equipped to enable it to carry out its assigned duties and roles effectively.
He said the regiment had mapped out strategies to use the equipment as the foundation to further equip itself to full capacity.