TA Paving the Way for Road Development in Guangxi, PRC

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (27 August 2003) - ADB has approved a US$500,000 technical assistance (TA) grant to help prepare a road development project in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the People's Republic of China (PRC).

The TA will assist the Guangxi Communications Department to undertake a feasibility study, environmental impact assessment, resettlement plan, and poverty impact analysis of the project.

The eventual road project will be a 188.6-kilometer expressway from Tanluo town in Nanning Prefecture, passing through Long'an, Pingguo, Tiandong, and Tiandeng counties to Baise city. Local access roads will be included to benefit the rural poor.

"The project will provide a passage for the western region to the seaports of Guangxi; Hong Kong, China; and Macao, China," says Kim Jraiw, an ADB Transport Specialist.

"Within the province, it will promote economic growth and reduce poverty. Regionally, it will spur cooperation between the PRC, Viet Nam and countries of the Greater Mekong subregion, as well as encourage overseas trade."

Guangxi, in the southwest of the country, is a major agricultural center whose mineral deposits could support moderate industrial development.

But in 2001 the province's gross domestic product per capita ranked 29 among 31 of the country's provinces and autonomous regions. The lack of transport infrastructure has contributed to the depressed economic conditions.

It would be third ADB-backed road project for the province, following the development of Fancheng port and its highway completed in 2001 and rated as "highly successful," and the Guangxi Roads Development Project approved in 2001.

The beneficiaries of the latest project have been classified into three categories:

• The Direct Project Influence Area, embracing a total population of 1.9 million. The area has a high number of minority people, and 25-45% of the population is poor. Of the 788 villages in this area, 413 are classified as "poverty villages," comprising 37% of the total population.
• The Area-wide Project Influence Area, covers nearly 5 million people, among which 25% are poor. The beneficiaries of this area account for about 75% of the poor in the Autonomous Region. The area has five tourist attractions, and hydropower projects, which badly need efficient roads. In addition, there is the Pingguo County Aluminum Company, employing 6,300 workers, that also depends heavily on the availability of transport.
• The Indirect Project Influence Area, which includes all interprovincial and regional beneficiaries.

At present, a two-lane 250-km road links Nanning and Baise, but this has many sharp bends and inadequate pavement. A car takes five hours to travel the route and trucks even longer.

Vehicles, pedestrians, and animals are competing for space on the road, which has a high accident rate that has severely strained welfare and health system resources.

The existing capacity of the road is 10,000 vehicles per day, but this has already been exceeded. Traffic is forecast to reach an average of 14,000 to 16,000 vehicles per day by 2005.

The TA is due for completion at the end of February 2004.

Read the full TA report.