ING. DR. ABASS MOHAMMED AWOLU is an accomplished Engineer with over
thirty years of experience in the Highway and Transportation sector in Ghana,
spanning transportation planning, highway engineering and planning, traffic
management and road safety.

Prior to becoming the Chief Director, Ing Dr Abass M. Awolu served as the Director of
the Department of Urban Roads from 2013 – 2021.

Dr Abass’s main professional interest is in Urban Transportation and the nexus and
interactions with Land Use Planning. He has a keen professional interest also in current
issues in Traffic Management and Safety as well as the management and safety of
Non-Motorized Transport.

Over his illustrious career, Dr Abass has also undertaken traffic impact studies on some
of the most iconic land use developments in Accra, including the Accra Mall (the first
mall in Ghana), the Airport City and Ambassadorial Enclave Projects.

He is skilled in the use of various Procurement systems including that of key Development Partners; the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB) and Agence Francaise de Development (AFD).

Dr Abass has also been responsible for the supervision of major infrastructural projects in Ghana using the various types of the FIDIC- Conditions of Contract.

These projects include:

• Construction of the Four -Tier Pokuase interchange in Ghana (the first four-tier interchange in Ghana) and the second in Africa

• Construction of Obetsebi Lamptey Interchange. Phase 1

• Construction of the Tamale Interchange

• Construction of the PTC Interchange in Takoradi

• Asphalt Overlay of over 1000km of urban roads in Ghana

• Areawide Coordination of Traffic Lights in Accra along the Nsawam Road Corridor

and the Construction of the First Traffic Management Control Centre in Ghana. This Centre is also the first in West Africa.

• Construction of the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange

• Construction of the Ring Road Flyover

• Construction of the Kasoa Interchange

• Construction of the Awoshie-Pokuase Road.

Through these projects, Dr Abass has honed his skills in Environmental Impact Assessments and handling other Safeguard issues related to transport projects. Dr Abass was part of the team that undertook reforms in the public transport sector in Accra that passed bye-laws to regulate the operations of public transport. These reforms led to the formation of the Greater Accra Passenger Transport Executives (GAPTE), as the main regulator of public transport operations in Accra. He supervised the construction of the first bus route in Accra. This was along the Amasaman- Accra route with provisions for terminal facilities at Amasaman and Ofankor.

In 2005 and 2006 he received special commendations from the Ministry of Roads and Highways for his efforts in ensuring that road works undertaken in the New Juaben and Ho Municipal Assemblies demonstrated Value for Money after the Ministry undertook a rigorous monitoring and evaluation exercise of works throughout the country.

He was chairman of:

– the National Engineering Committee (NECT) that developed the first manual for Right of Way Management in Ghana. This manual was commissioned by Government in 2001.

-the Technical Sub-Committee of the Accra Planning Committee from 1994-2003 and,

– the Technical Sub-Committee of the New Juaben Municipal Planning Committee from 2004-2008.

Dr Abass is a distinguished Fellow of the Ghana Institution of Engineering, a trained Public Private Partnership Specialist from the Institute of Public-Private Partnerships (IP3) Washington-USA and a proud Honorary Doctorate laureate of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).