Volivo Bridge Bidding Opens as Agbodza Projects Early 2027 Construction Start

The long-delayed Volivo Bridge over the Volta River has moved a step closer to reality, with the Ministry of Roads and Highways opening a fresh bidding process on Thursday, November 5, 2026, and Minister Governs Kwame Agbodza expressing confidence that construction could begin by the end of the year or early 2027.

Speaking at the bid opening in Accra, Agbodza described the project as a landmark piece of engineering and a symbol of Ghana-Japan cooperation. "This will be the most beautiful engineering bridge piece on the landscape of Ghana," he said. "This process started somewhere 2015-2016. A full bidding process was carried out. We are hoping that towards the end of the year, early part of next year, actual construction work should be ready" .

The Minister credited renewed collaboration with Japanese counterparts and project consultants for accelerating the procurement timeline. "We shouldn't have been at this milestone yet, but working together with our Japanese counterparts and the consultants, we've been able to fast-track many of the processes leading to us having the opportunity to do the bid opening today," he stated . An evaluation team has been established to assess submissions, with the process expected to be completed within seven days .

A Decade in the Making

The Volivo Bridge has languished in planning for nearly a decade. The project suffered a significant setback when the previous contractor withdrew after eight years of delays, forcing the government to restart procurement entirely . President John Dramani Mahama disclosed in July 2026 that a delegation led by the Roads Minister had travelled to Japan to conclude discussions on the project's financing and restart the contractor selection process .

Japan's commitment to the project has been longstanding. In June 2025, the Japan International Cooperation Agency reaffirmed its interest in financing the bridge, with JICA Senior Executive Vice President Miyazaki Katsura confirming that a technical team would be dispatched to Ghana to assess additional funding requirements . The bridge forms a critical component of the Eastern Corridor road project and is listed under President Mahama's US$10 billion "Big Push" infrastructure initiative .

Engineering Ambition

When completed, the Volivo Bridge will be Ghana's tallest bridge—a 540-metre cable-stayed structure with 51-metre towers and a 280-metre main span, 200 metres longer than the Adomi Bridge . It will span the Lower Volta River to connect Volivo in the Greater Accra Region with Dofor Adidome in the Volta Region, completing a vital link in the Eastern Corridor road network that connects northern and southern Ghana .

The bridge is expected to ease movement of passengers and goods across the Volta River, improve links between surrounding communities, and create better opportunities for commercial activities . Agbodza framed the project as concrete evidence of the enduring partnership between Ghana and Japan. "We must build this bridge as one of the most concrete pieces of evidence of a cordial and progressive relationship between the people of Ghana and Japan," he said .

The Road Ahead

The Minister urged the eventual contractor to work around the clock to ensure timely delivery, assuring that the government would provide the necessary support . The opening of bids marks the most tangible progress on the project since Mahama's government assumed office, but the path from bid evaluation to financial close and site mobilisation remains subject to the complexities that have stalled the bridge before.

For communities on both banks of the Volta, the promise of a bridge that has been discussed for over a decade now rests on whether the current momentum can be converted into steel and concrete.