August 2010 - A festive ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the opening of the USAID-funded Eizariyeh entrance road and Abu Dis internal road, in the central West Bank. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and USAID Deputy Mission Director Sherry Carlin attended the event, together with Palestinian Authority ministry representatives and the local community.
USAID provided $9 million for the rehabilitation works, as part of its efforts to lay the foundation for the Palestinian state, create jobs, and improve living conditions. The project was implemented under the Infrastructure Needs Program, and consisted of new base course and asphalt layers, sidewalks, storm water drainage systems, and road safety features including road markings, traffic signs, street lights and guard rails.
Opening the Eizariyeh entrance road is of particular importance to the area’s economy. The town has a meat canning factory providing work for 300 workers, a cigarette factory that has 500 workers, and Al-Quds University’s 14,000 students and 1,500 staff members pass through Eizariyeh to reach the university. No less than 650 shops line up the road, and Eizariyeh is home to five banks and several branch offices of the Palestinian Authority. The rehabilitated road is expected not only to improve travel conditions, but also stimulate business in Eizariyeh and Abu Dis.
Issam Faroun, Head of the Eizariyeh City Council, provided additional insight about the road’s significance. He told that 300,000 tourists visit Eizariyeh’s biblical Lazarus Tomb annually and half a million persons travel through the community to the bridge leading to Jordan, in addition to commuters between the northern and southern parts of the West Bank. According to Faroun, it is no surprise that taxi drivers inquired in radio talk shows about the opening date of the new road.
A taxi driver Mazen Natsheh wanted to see the road reopened. “I suffered because of the poor road conditions. There were no road signs or guardrails,” he said. “I take two trips a day. My vehicle got damaged because of the road, but I kept coming back because I must sustain my family. Now I’m happy because I see a tremendous improvement. I have been driving for 14 years and the road was never this good.” Mazen is well aware that the project was funded by USAID in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority. He can see the project sign as he travels on the new road.
The Eizariyeh entrance road is part of USAID’s $358 million, five-year Infrastructure Needs Program (INP) which provides infrastructure assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank. The projects include the rehabilitation of roads, water systems and distribution networks. The projects also create jobs for hundreds of Palestinians.
In 2009, USAID through Infrastructure Needs Program rehabilitated close to 65 kilometers of roads, two large water projects and built and furnished seven schools, benefiting more than one million Palestinians. The ongoing projects in 2010 consist of more than 200 kilometers of rehabilitated roads and 10 water projects with the total USAID funding of $177 million.
