Carlos Bonete, the Mozambican Minister of Public Works, says completion of the Maputo rings road has been delayed again, this time until December 2016.

The road, which is being built by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), was supposed to be finished during the first half of this year.

Bonete paid a visit to the construction site on Saturday, where he explained that the nature and complexity of the contract had caused the latest delay.

The rings road was originally planned to open in December 2014, but that deadline was exceeded due to resettlement problems of the families living in the area.

The project, costing an estimated $315 million, includes construction of a 74km road that will create a new North/South axis (between Miramar Beach and the village of Marracuene), and will involve building six bridges and three junctions that will allow traffic flow on National Highway Number One on the Zimpeto-Marracuene stretch.