World Bank Regional Director Visits Newly Completed Jericho Footbridge in Honiara

HONIARA, Solomon Islands – WORLD Bank Director of Strategy and Operations for the East Asia and Pacific Region, Ms. Elisabeth Huybens, has visited the newly completed Jericho Footbridge in Kolaa Ward, Honiara, highlighting the impact of community infrastructure investments under the CAUSE II Project.

Ms. Huybens visited the site this week alongside World Bank CAUSE II Task Team Leader, Ms. Ifeta Smajic, and CAUSE II Project Manager, Mr. Cris Afable, where they were welcomed by local children who proudly showed the delegation across the new bridge and up the connecting stairs.

Connecting the Jericho 1 and Jericho 2 Jacob's Ladders, the footbridge provides residents, schoolchildren and families with safer and easier access across the gully and along the steep hillside, regardless of weather conditions.

The newly completed facility is expected to directly benefit an estimated 750 residents, improving everyday mobility and access between the two communities.

Constructed in just 51 days through a community contract involving 17 workers, 30 per cent of whom were women, the project also provided valuable income-generating opportunities for local workers while addressing an important community access need.

The Jericho Footbridge is one of 50 community infrastructure investments delivered by CAUSE II in Honiara, reflecting the Project's continued efforts to improve access, safety and living conditions in the city's informal settlements.

To date, CAUSE II has generated 66,652 labour days across Honiara, building on the 370,000 labour days created under the earlier CAUSE I Project.

Through these investments, CAUSE II continues to support community participation, create employment opportunities and deliver practical infrastructure improvements that make a difference in people's everyday lives.

Implemented by the Solomon Islands Government, the CAUSE II Project is supported by the World Bank and the Australian Government through the PNG and Pacific Islands Umbrella Facility Multi-Donor Trust Fund.

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