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MANILA, PHILIPPINES (21 June 2004) - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a grant of US$2.2 million to demonstrate the poverty reduction impact of maintaining Cambodia's national road network.
Funded by the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction, financed by the Government of Japan, the project will pilot test sustainable road maintenance in three provinces of the northwest of the country - Battambang, Pailin, and Banteay Meanchey.
It will set up the administrative and financing framework necessary to oversee roadworks and support the development of small-scale contractors to carry out the maintenance.
The project will also provide supplementary funding for the maintenance of about 600 kilometers of roads over the three-year life of the project, creating jobs for the poor and ensuring long-term access to and from remote rural areas.
"The project is expected to reduce poverty by 5-10% in areas where the roads are maintained and generate about 18,800 jobs," according to Peter Broch, an ADB Transport Economist.
"In the long run, if the project establishes a sustainable road maintenance system, the impact will increase as it will open up permanent access to services and income for rural communities. For example, agriculture can diversify into investments dependent on better access, including small-scale agro-processing and various support services and industries."
About 90% of the country's poor, or about 3.6 million people, live in rural areas. The average incidence of poverty in the project area is estimated at 39%.
As the Government has worked to restore road access throughout the country, rehabilitation of the national highway network is nearing completion. "The growing number of rehabilitated roads makes maintenance urgent, especially of rural secondary and tertiary roads, which are mostly gravel or earthen roads that will deteriorate within a few years if not regularly maintained."
The project will introduce low-cost and labor intensive surfacing of maintainable gravel roads to cut down on the need for periodic road maintenance.
To oversee the road works, a joint road maintenance unit will be set up staffed with engineers and technicians from provincial offices of the Ministry of Public Works and Ministry of Rural Development, which are the executing agencies.
A key point of the project is to develop professionalism in all aspects of road maintenance, increasing the pool of private small-scale contractors available to service the roads through training programs to upgrade skills in low-cost road surface sealing.
"Besides substantial savings in long-term maintenance costs, and the jobs and income generated, the roads will provide all-year accessibility and lower transport costs - all significantly reducing poverty," Mr. Broch adds.
The project will be carried out at provincial level, in support of the Government's policy of devolving infrastructure provision. The Government will contribute $2.55 million toward the project's total cost of $5.00 million, while $252,000 will come from private sector contributions.
The JFPR was set up in 2000 with an initial contribution of Y10 billion (about $90 million), followed by additional contributions of $155 million and a commitment of $50 million.
ADB is dedicated to reducing poverty in the Asia and Pacific region through pro-poor sustainable economic growth, social development, and good governance. Established in 1966, it is owned by 63 members - 45 from the region. In 2003, it approved loans and technical assistance amounting to US$6.1 billion and US$177 million, respectively.
More at adb.org/media