Implementing a strategic vision for Gabon
Gabon’s national infrastructure master plan (NIMP) involved establishing the country’s first public-works agency l’Agence Nationale des Grands Travaux d’Infrastructures (ANGTI) to deliver a pipeline of priority infrastructure projects, while raising construction standards of safety, quality, and project implementation to serve the nation's approximately 2.1 million people. Key to the long-term success of this plan was enhancing the Gabonese skill base to manage the projects locally for the long term. Over the ten-year period the proportion of ANGTI staff working across health, education, transport and energy projects rose from just over 55% to more than 90%.
‘We are proud to have supported the implementation of Gabon’s vision for economic growth. A key focus was upskilling local workers to manage major infrastructure projects during our 10-year partnership and beyond, when the country needs it and in a sustainable way that protects resources and biodiversity.’ - Bogdan Sgarcitu, Bechtel’s project director in Gabon (2016 – 2020)
There have been many success stories throughout the ten-year partnership, particularly in social infrastructure. Since 2010, hundreds of thousands more people in Gabon now have access to better healthcare, schools and education facilities, affordable energy and digital connectivity. In 2018, the use of internet in businesses, in schools and in the home had increased since 2010 from 13 to 62%.
Landmark projects include the sports stadiums and associated hotels that hosted the 2012 and 2017 Africa Cup of Nations; the Schweitzer medical center with world-class research in tropical and other diseases; and an innovative urban planning tool to tackle the pressures of urbanization.
Among the road upgrades was the ‘Glass Road’ – reconfigured to create an urban boulevard in accordance with international standards. The road, complete with sidewalks, parking areas, solar public lighting, landscaping, underground water, electricity and telecoms networks was the first project of its kind in Libreville and will be used as a model for future similar urban road projects.
Gabon National Infrastructure: Connecting Communities
Another project of national significance was the technically complex Route Nationale 1, a 7km motorway out of Libreville, which provided the only route from the capital city to the rest of the country.
In 2017, the Government made a strategic decision to pivot to the so-called ‘Presidential Priority Projects’ that were small in scale but large in social impact. ANGTI responded and adapted to this new focus and delivered hundreds of wells with clean water, thousands of solar lights and revamped 6,400 primary schools.