Armenia: North-South Road Corridor Investment Program—Tranche 1

This report presents the findings of an independent evaluation of the North–South Road Corridor Investment Program (Tranche 1) in Armenia, supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The project was financed by a multitranche financing facility (MFF) with a total loan amount of $500 million. The MFF aimed to improve the entire North–South Road Corridor, the 550- kilometer (km) Agarak–Kapan–Yerevan–Bavra road crossing Armenia from its southern border with Iran to its northern border with Georgia. When the MFF was approved, tranche 1 was designed to reconstruct 18.4 km between Yerevan and Ashtarak and to improve the safety of the Yerevan–Ararat road. Tranche 2 would upgrade the 88-km Ashtarak–Gyumri section of the corridor. The design of tranche 2 also included the modernization of border and customs infrastructure and related facilities. The details of the succeeding tranches were not specified, but they would cover other sections of the 550-km corridor. 

Overall, the project was successful . The project addressed a high priority program of investments identified by the government. However, the project preparation and capacity development for planning and road maintenance were weak. In future, ADB and other development partners will need to leverage investments in physical infrastructure to promote critical institutional and policy reforms that will accelerate progress toward achieving a more open and market-based economy in Armenia.