Tajikistan : Road Network Sustainability Project

Transport / Road transport (non-urban)

The project will address the oblast's immediate needs by improving two national arterial roads, namely (i) Dangara-Okmazor and (ii) Hulbuk-Kangurt. The sections link the Asian Highway No. 66 at Dangara and Hulbuk and serve as a vital connector of major economic centers in the oblast. Further, the Dangara-Okmazor section is a part of a key corridor which links with the country's major international road (CAREC Corridors 5 and 6) at Bokhtar. Despite their importance, the roads have not been well equipped with road safety installments and disaster-proof measures. The lack of adequate road maintenance has led to their deterioration. Improving the sections is essential for the development of the oblast in the light of the government's plan to make Dangara the oblast's key economic hub and the oblast's new capital city in coming years.

In 2022, the ADB Board approved the additional financing to scale-up the project's scope. The rehabilitation of the 40-km Okmazor-Bokhtar section is a new inclusion to complete the Bokhtar-Dangara section which is a connector of the Asian Highway No. 66 and CAREC Corridors 5 and 6.

Importance of transport to Tajikistan's development. Tajikistan is landlocked and bordered by Afghanistan, the People's Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Uzbekistan. The country has a gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of $870.8 in 2019, and about 27% of the total population lives below the national poverty line. Most of the population categorized as poor live in rural areas where transport networks have remained undeveloped, and have stayed isolated from main economic activities.

Need for a balanced development of the road network. Due to underdeveloped railway and aviation subsectors, the country heavily relies on road transport for intra- and inter-regional movements of goods and people. The road network under the MOT's jurisdiction totals 14,339 km, comprising 3,348 km of international roads (23%), 2,127 km of national roads (15%), and 8,864 km of local roads (62%), out of which 77% have been paved. To strengthen connectivity with surrounding countries, the government has prioritized the improvement of international highway networks, which make up CAREC corridors (2, 3, 5, and 6) and Asian Highways (7, 65, and 66). Most of these international roads are in good or fair condition. On the other hand, national roads have remained in deteriorated and unsafe conditions, due to high disaster-prone topography, dysfunctional maintenance systems, overloaded trucks, mixed use of travel modes, and poor quality of original construction works carried out around the 1970s.

Weak economic and physical connectivity in Southern Tajikistan. Such unbalanced development of roads is reflected in the poor state of roads in Khatlon oblast in Southern Tajikistan. The oblast is home to 37.2% of the country's population, the highest among all oblasts/regions. The oblast is also the country's largest agricultural producer. For these reasons, the oblast's development is critical to the overall economic growth of Tajikistan. Meanwhile, the poverty rate is the highest in the country while the human development and income indexes are the lowest. The poor quality of existing transport infrastructure is a key factor behind these socioeconomic challenges.

Economic growth promoted

Safe and competitive connectivity established across the CAREC Region

Safety and reliability of road network improved in southern Tajikistan

Roads in southern Tajikistan improved

Road asset management system database developed

Women's access to socioeconomic opportunities enhanced

Procurement readiness for the road section to be financed under the additional financing enhanced