WASHINGTON – The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved an International Development Association (IDA) credit financing of US$29 million for the Liberia Southeastern Corridor Road Asset Management Project (SECRAMP). The project will support the Government’s efforts to enhance road connectivity for residents living along selected sections of the Ganta-to-Zwedru Road Corridor, and to improve institutional capacity to manage the road sector.
IDA will also provide a US$48 million Payment Guarantee which will leverage additional US$60 million from the private sector. The SECRAMP will be co-financed by a US$24 million Liberia Reconstruction Trust Fund (LRTF) grant contribution from the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (DfID) and Germany (KfW). Recently, KfW and DfID provided additional grants of US$16 million and US$6 million respectively. The Government of Liberia will make available US$24 million through the National Road Fund.
The SECRAMP supports the Government’s Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD) through the development of road infrastructure to support economic transformation necessary to sustain growth and reduce poverty. The project will also ensure the establishment of an environment conducive to: commercial agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and rural development; promoting development of micro, small, and medium enterprises; and improving access to markets.
“This project will bring relief to Liberians in accessing social services and advancing economic development, especially to the people of the southeastern region who are most of the time isolated from the rest of the country due to poor road connectivity,” said Larisa Leshchenko, World Bank Liberia Country Manager.
About 471,000 project beneficiaries are targeted including residents, businesses, and transport service companies located along the rehabilitated corridor and in adjacent areas who will benefit from access to a climate-resilient all-weather paved road. These beneficiaries will experience substantial cost reductions, shorter transport times, and all-year access to services and markets. The project implementation will generate local employment for mostly unskilled laborers, and on-the-job training opportunities for construction workers at a variety of skill levels.
“The project, the first of its kind in IDA’s portfolio, deploys a combination of IDA Credit, IDA Guarantees, and Grant resources to leverage private financing for a road Public Private Partnership (PPP) in an affordable and fiscally sustainable manner,” said Co-Task Team Leaders Kulwinder Singh Rao and Satheesh Kumar Sundararajan.
The Ministry of Public Works (MPW) and Infrastructure Implementation Unit (IIU) will benefit from the project interventions through capacity building, support to the IIU and Road Agency (under MPW), and the institutional reform activities, which will help clarify mandates and improve their effectiveness. Local non-governmental organizations (NGO) will receive support to improve the project’s capacity to mitigate sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) risks.
Building on Output and Performance-Based Road Contracts, SECRAMP will incorporate a Special Purpose Vehicle for the improvement and maintenance of a minimum of 100 km of the Ganta-Zwedru Road Corridor (focusing principally on the Ganta-Tappita section) through a 15-year concession PPP Contract to the private sector.