County Maintained Rural Roads making World-Wide Impression

DeFUNIAK SPRINGS -- A representative of the Nigerian government's Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources toured the rural areas of north Walton County Thursday to learn how county Public Works crews toughen dirt roads to withstand erosion. 

Nigerian government leaders are working to help farmers in the West African nation to get their food "from the farm to the market" on dirt roads to improve the nation's economy.

"Just like in the United States and in Walton County, we can't afford to pave every road in Nigeria," said Engineer M. Ola Akeju, Assistant Director to the Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources while on a tour through north Walton County. "Walton County uses a process to minimize dirt road erosion and it looks like this type road stabilization process works quite well for the people of Walton County."

Akeju was accompanied by Ike Onyiuke of a company called Universal Stabilization JV Limited of Abuja, Nigeria, which specializes in road stabilization products. 

Walton County Public Works crews have been using a road stabilization process on many local dirt roads since 1998.

Aaron Warren, Engineer in the Walton County Public Works Division, says the process used by the county makes road beds stronger, keeping washouts and erosion to a minimum. 

"Repairs to dirt roads are minimized when we use this process, even after hurricanes and floods," said Warren. "We're quite proud to share our road stabilization techniques with other countries." 

Warren said he has provided tours to other international visitors from the Soviet Union in 2008 with similar interests in stabilizing rural roads in that part of the world.

Akeju spent just over a day touring Walton County roads and reviewing equipment that the Walton County Public Works Division uses in the road stabilization projects, along with Ike Onyiuke. 

Akeju said he will report his Walton County findings to the Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources to determine if this particular process should be used in Nigeria.