By Yiep Joseph
General Manager of Wunkoc Engineering Company, Francis Bok, has dismissed reports that the construction of Akon International Airport in Warrap State has stopped.
Wunkoc Engineering Company is a local company contracted by the government to construct the airport.
In an interview, Bok stated that work is progressing well.
However, Bok acknowledged that the project has faced some challenges, particularly due to persistent rainfall, which has complicated mobility for the engineers on-site.
He said despite the hurdles, the team remains committed to continuing the work on the airport.
“All our engineers and other staff are actually in the sites (Akon International Airport) as we speak; it is only that all the areas where we go and get the marram and other construction materials have actually been somehow submerged with water or inaccessible for the time being,” he said.
“The sub-contractors, the international one and the national one, and we as the indigenous companies that have been contracted to construct this international state of the art, we are confident that we are going to get it done,” he added.
Bok stated that the contractors working on the 3.5 km international airport are committed to completing the project within the agreed-upon timeframe despite facing various challenges.
He mentioned that the country’s economic crisis has been impacting the project and noted that the company relies on government funding since it is a government project.
Bok expressed optimism that the recent developments in reopening oil production in affected areas will enable the government to provide the necessary funding required by the company.
“We are patient, although we have not received all that we need from the government, but we believe that as time goes on, things will be good on the side of the government,” he said.
Meanwhile, in a separate interview with this outlet, Kuec Deng, the speaker of the Warrap state assembly, expressed that the completion of Akon International Airport would benefit Warrap State as well as the neighbouring states.
He revealed that the project is a national project funded by the government, citing that the state assembly only hopes for its progress to enhance trade and agriculture in the area.
In May 2023, the Vice President of the Service Cluster, Hussein Abdelbagi, laid the foundation for the construction of what would become the second international airport in South Sudan, the Akon International Airport.
The project, worth USD 15 million, was expected to be completed within two years and built based on approved international airport standards.
There were allegations that the airport was flooded when a flood hit Warrap State, but the claims were denied by the company’s CEO, Bak Mayen Ring.