ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank
(ADB) will provide a loan of $196.9 million for Post-Flood National Highways
Rehabilitation Project, according to an agreement signed on Monday.
The project, whose total cost is estimated at $218.8m and that
will take three years to complete, will help those areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,
Punjab and Sindh that were affected in the 2010 floods. Under the project, key
infrastructure will also be built to sustain the livelihood of local residents
and help them access markets.
Besides, the project will assist the National Highway Authority
(NHA) to build its post-disaster traffic management capacity. The NHA will
rehabilitate 212 kilometres of roads and 33 bridges of the national highways
network.
The agreement was signed between Economic Affairs Division (EAD)
Secretary Tariq Bajwa and ADB Country Director Werner E. Liepach .Speaking on
the occasion, Mr Bajwa expressed gratitude to the Asian lender for providing vital
support, and assured that the government would mobilise all-out efforts for
improving infrastructure.
Efficient and rapid highways provide economic benefits and have
multiplier effect, such as better accessibility to markets, employment and
additional investments, he said. This is even more so in a global economy where
economic opportunities have been increasingly related to the mobility of
people, goods and information, he added.
Mr Liepach also assured that the ADB would continue supporting
Pakistan’s efforts for investing in infrastructure.
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