The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved a $70 million loan to help provide a more efficient, safe, and disaster resilient transport sector in Cambodia, particularly by improving national roads in the provinces of Prey Veng, Siem Reap, and Svay Rieng along the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Southern Economic Corridor.
“In Cambodia roads are the dominant mode of transport, making road transport critical to the country’s social and economic development. However, the road subsector in Cambodia remains inefficient and fragmented,” said Oyunchimeg Erdene, a senior transport specialist at ADB.
“Apart from enhancing existing roads in the three focus areas, the project will also help improve the government’s capacity in road asset management.”
Cambodia’s road networks currently have low levels of connectivity and efficiency due to incomplete regulatory frameworks, low institutional capacity, limited private sector participation, and the lack of sustainability of road assets. There is a need to repair and rehabilitate some of the more than 15,400km (9,569ml) of national and provincial roads managed by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT) to enhance Cambodia’s connectivity, particularly, with its neighbouring countries within the GMS.
Specifically, the Road Network Improvement Project (RNIP) will improve 147km (91.34ml) of unsafe and flood prone national Cambodia road sections, while providing all-weather connectivity and climate resilience.
It will also enhance the government’s capacity, through the MPWT, to better manage its road assets through better operations and maintenance. In addition, the project will improve people’s awareness of road safety and traffic regulations.
A notable feature of the project is the pilot testing of a hybrid performance-based contract for undertaking road works which involves construction and routine maintenance, increasing private sector participation in road maintenance.
It is designed to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of road asset management in Cambodia by expanding the scope of contractors from project executors to road managers.
This article first appeared on the Asian Development Bank website and is reproduced here with its kind permission.
Related:
- Asian Development Bank approves additional funds to supports disaster-resilient agriculture in Cambodia (Far Eastern Agriculture)
- ADB Supports Disaster-Resilient Agriculture in Cambodia (Relief Web)
- Mekong countries emphasise infrastructure connectivity (Viet Nam News)
$70 million: ADB Funds Upgrade to Cambodia Roads in GMS added by Asian Development Bank on
View all posts by Asian Development Bank →
In 2017, ADB operations totalled $32.2 billion, including $11.9 billion in co-financing.
Latest posts by Asian Development Bank (see all)
- RRTS: Increasing inter-island trade in the Philippines through island hopping – June 22, 2020
- Bayan Bayanihan brings food and hope to the poorest of the poor – May 21, 2020
- COVID-19: the time to act on food security is now – May 10, 2020
- No handwashing for 1 in 5 Indonesians as COVID-19 runs wild – May 8, 2020