African Community Access Programme gallery

Without good roads, rural African communities remain isolated and excluded from mainstream development. AFCAP contractors assess a water-logged dirt track on a demonstration site in Tanzania. Photograph: Crown Agents

Collaboration is crucial to AFCAP’s success. Transport sector researchers gather to assess the requirements for road construction on a site in Tanzania. Photograph: Crown Agents

AFCAP researchers interviewing road users in Mozambique to understand transport service needs and to help governments inform policy. Photograph: Crown Agents

Dynamic Cone Penetrometer is the most widely accepted portable method for evaluating the strength and density of soil, insitu. Researchers have discovered using this equipment that fewer pavement layers are needed for low volume roads, saving US$17,500 per kilometre. Photograph: Crown Agents

Transport workers on a test site in Mozambique where roller equipment is being used to compact soil and gravel for the effective construction of durable roads. Photograph: Crown Agents

Road sealing in Mozambique to reinforce the design surface, protect against moisture and wear and tear and cover any uneven patches. Photograph: Crown Agents

A typical road in Mozambique showing the various modes of transport – on foot, women carrying goods on their heads and others catching a lift in a ‘chapa’ open-top truck. Photograph: Crown Agents

AFCAP research is helping to provide safe, reliable and sustainable access to markets, healthcare and education by promoting research to influence policy and practice for the construction of rural roads. Photograph: Crown Agents