Sri Lanka : Second Integrated Road Investment Program-Tranche 4

Sovereign Project | 50301-005

The Second Integrated Road Investment Program, a multitranche financing facility (MFF) for the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka approved on 29 September 2017, will improve access to the road network in Sri Lanka's rural areas, supporting rural economic and social development. The investment program, in the amount if $900 million and with an availability period ending in March 2027, will upgrade and maintain about 3,400 kilometers (km) of rural access roads to an all-weather standard; rehabilitate and maintain about 340 km of national roads in Eastern, Northern, Uva, and Western provinces; and improve the capacity of road agencies with respect to road design and construction, research capacity, maintenance, safeguards, and road safety.

Project Details

  • Project Officer
    Lu, Yang
    Sectors Group
    Request for information
  • Approval Date
    20 November 2023
  • Country/Economy
    Sri Lanka
  • Sector
    • Transport
Project Name Second Integrated Road Investment Program-Tranche 4
Project Number 50301-005
Country / Economy Sri Lanka
Project Status Approved
Project Type / Modality of Assistance Loan
Source of Funding / Amount
Loan 4384-SRI: Second Integrated Road Investment Program
Concessional ordinary capital resources lending US$ 60.00 million
Operational Priorities OP1: Addressing remaining poverty and reducing inequalities
OP2: Accelerating progress in gender equality
OP3: Tackling climate change, building climate and disaster resilience, and enhancing environmental sustainability
OP5: Promoting rural development and food security
Sector / Subsector

Transport / Road transport (non-urban)

Gender Effective gender mainstreaming
Description

The Second Integrated Road Investment Program, a multitranche financing facility (MFF) for the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka approved on 29 September 2017, will improve access to the road network in Sri Lanka's rural areas, supporting rural economic and social development. The investment program, in the amount if $900 million and with an availability period ending in March 2027, will upgrade and maintain about 3,400 kilometers (km) of rural access roads to an all-weather standard; rehabilitate and maintain about 340 km of national roads in Eastern, Northern, Uva, and Western provinces; and improve the capacity of road agencies with respect to road design and construction, research capacity, maintenance, safeguards, and road safety.

A periodic financing request for the fourth tranche was received on 20 September 2023. Tranche 4 is aligned with the road map in the FFA to establish 2,500 rural development centers by upgrading or rehabilitating rural access routes, including local authority, provincial, and national roads. The proposed tranche also aligns with the FFA policy framework by (i) adopting a two-tier strategy to provide nationwide connectivity by (a) establishing a trunk road network with expressways and well-connected national roads, and (b) completing a rural road network to connect the rural population to trunk roads efficiently; and (ii) establishing a project implementation framework for the RDA to improve provincial and local authority roads jointly with local road agencies to accelerate completion of the rural road network by supplementing the limited capacity of the local agencies. The proposed tranche also contributes to achieving the objectives of ADB's country partnership strategy (CPS) for Sri Lanka, 20182022, which aims to strengthen the drivers of economic growth and improve the quality of growth.

Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy The Government of Sri Lanka plans to establish 2,500 rural development centers as rural economic market hubs. This will be achieved by (i) grouping many villages under identified potential development centers that have access to fully equipped rural economic market units, and (ii) by upgrading or rehabilitating rural access roads. Progress in improving provincial and local authority roads, however, has been relatively slow because of (i) competition for budget allocations, (ii) limited availability of sustainable raw materials, (iii) limited project implementation and maintenance capacity of road agencies, (iv) ad-hoc selection of provincial and local authority roads for improvement in the absence of clear criteria, and (v) insufficient community involvement in rural road development. The investment program will address these issues and improve the connectivity between priority rural development centers and surrounding villages.
Impact

Connectivity between rural communities and socioeconomic centers in Sri Lanka improved (Public Investment Programme, 2017-2020)

Project Outcome
Description of Outcome

Transport efficiency on project roads increased.

Progress Toward Outcome
Implementation Progress
Description of Project Outputs

Road conditions between the selected rural communities and socioeconomic centers improved with climate resilience features

Capacity of road agencies enhanced

Status of Implementation Progress (Outputs, Activities, and Issues)
Geographical Location Nation-wide
Safeguard Categories
Environment B
Involuntary Resettlement B
Indigenous Peoples C
Summary of Environmental and Social Aspects
Environmental Aspects All ongoing roads financed under the investment program have been assessed, with the findings and mitigations covered in the provincial initial environmental examination, which were disclosed prior to the MFF approval in 2017. The environmental assessment and review framework (EARF) prepared prior to MFF approval remains valid. All roads identified under the program have limited footprints, involving mainly rehabilitation and maintenance of existing rural and national roads located outside protected or critical habitat areas. Environmental impacts include typical road construction-related issues such as generation of dust and other air pollutants, noise, solid and liquid waste from construction sites and workers' camps, and community and occupational health and safety concerns.
Involuntary Resettlement All roads have been assessed for involuntary resettlement and only those that do not require expropriation will receive financing under the investment program. The RDA's social due diligence and monitoring reports confirm that applicable safeguard requirements have been met. Civil works in ongoing tranches have been undertaken only within existing right-of-way, except where communities have donated small strips of land to improve road safety. A voluntary land donation system is in place following procedural requirements in the resettlement framework. The system requires the government to ensure that land donation is undertaken without coercion and documented in a transparent manner, and that an independent monitor verifies the process. The reports also confirmed that the grievance redress mechanism is functioning in all provinces. The social monitoring reports have been submitted and disclosed.
Indigenous Peoples No indigenous peoples community as defined by ADB's Safeguard Policy Statement has been identified in the subproject areas.
Stakeholder Communication, Participation, and Consultation
During Project Design Consultation with affected communities is being conducted, with inputs and suggestions from stakeholders incorporated in the final design as exemplified in the context-sensitive design approach.
During Project Implementation Consultation with affected communities is expected to be conducted continuously during project implementation.
Business Opportunities
Consulting Services

(i) Project implementation consultants (QCBS 90:10), including for training programs

- 6 person-months of international consulting services and 1,550 person-months of national consulting services (all four contracts awarded in previous tranches)

Procurement

(i) International and/or national competitive bidding (civil works)

-All 66 contracts amounting to $758.02 million have all been awarded.

(Procurement and consulting services include all activities under the facility because of the time-slice approach, but exclude the amount of taxes and duties contributed by the government through exemption.)

Responsible ADB Officer Lu, Yang
Responsible ADB Department Sectors Group
Responsible ADB Division Transport Sector Office (SG-TRA)
Executing Agencies
Ministry of Transport and Highways
Timetable
Concept Clearance -
Fact Finding -
MRM 25 Mar 2022
Approval 20 Nov 2023
Last Review Mission -
Last PDS Update 30 Sep 2022

Project Data Sheets (PDS) contain summary information on the project or program. Because the PDS is a work in progress, some information may not be included in its initial version but will be added as it becomes available. Information about proposed projects is tentative and indicative.

The Access to Information Policy (AIP) recognizes that transparency and accountability are essential to development effectiveness. It establishes the disclosure requirements for documents and information ADB produces or requires to be produced.

The Accountability Mechanism provides a forum where people adversely affected by ADB-assisted projects can voice and seek solutions to their problems and report alleged noncompliance of ADB's operational policies and procedures.

In preparing any country program or strategy, financing any project, or by making any designation of, or reference to, a particular territory or geographic area in this document, the Asian Development Bank does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area.


Safeguard Documents See also: Safeguards
Safeguard documents provided at the time of project/facility approval may also be found in the list of linked documents provided with the Report and Recommendation of the President.

None currently available.


Evaluation Documents See also: Independent Evaluation

None currently available.


Related Publications

None currently available.


The Access to Information Policy (AIP) establishes the disclosure requirements for documents and information ADB produces or requires to be produced in its operations to facilitate stakeholder participation in ADB's decision-making. For more information, refer to the Safeguard Policy Statement, Operations Manual F1, and Operations Manual L3.

Requests for information may also be directed to the InfoUnit.

Tenders

No tenders for this project were found.

Contracts Awarded

No contracts awarded for this project were found

Procurement Plan

None currently available.