ADB okays addl $190m for rural connectivity project

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $190 million additional funding for the ongoing Rural Connectivity Improvement Project that is upgrading rural roads, making agricultural areas more productive, and improving socioeconomic centres in Bangladesh.

“This is ADB’s second additional financing for the project, further expanding improvement of rural road networks and introducing innovative features in climate and disaster resilience and road asset management to enhance living conditions in rural areas,” said ADB Principal Rural Development Specialist Masahiro Nishimura.

“This project is helping improve transport efficiency and reliability in rural areas, boost agricultural productivity, and generate employment to help the country’s sustainable economic growth,” he added.

The ongoing project, originally approved in November 2018, aimed to upgrade about 1,700 kilometers of rural roads, strengthen the capacity of rural infrastructure agencies and road users, and improve rural road master planning. More than 900km of rural roads have been added to the original target since 2020, read a press release on Tuesday.

This latest loan will further extend improvement of another 1,350km of rural roads with all-weather standards, climate resilience, and safety features. It will provide equipment and trucks to 180 mobile road maintenance offices at the upazila (subdistrict) level and will strengthen the capability of the Local Government Engineering Department on nature-based bioengineering solutions for climate change adaptation.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.