Over Rs. 14 b for Northern Road Connectivity Project

Additional financing will be obtained to rehabilitate national and provincial roads to achieve balanced development through the improvement of road connectivity between the Northern Province and other provinces. Accordingly, 200 kilometers of 19 roads are expected to be rehabilitated under the Northern Road Connectivity Project (Additional Financing).

The total investment cost of this project is USD 112.8 million (approximately Rs. 14.6 billion), while USD 98 million is provided by the Asian Development Bank. The additional financing includes a loan of USD 30 million from the Ordinary Capital Resources and a loan equivalent to USD 68 million from the Asian Development Fund (ADF) of ADB. The Government contribution to the investment would be USD 14.8 million.

The following specific interventions are expected to be carried out under the project;

Rehabilitation and improvement of about 80 km of national highways in the Northern and North Central Provinces.

Rehabilitation of about 50 km and 70 km of roads in Northern and North Central Provinces respectively and rehabilitation or replacement of selected bridges.

The above road rehabilitation activities are scheduled to be completed by the end of December 2017 under the additional financing of Northern Road Connectivity Project, which is expected to be implemented with ADB loan funds. The Road Development Authority under the supervision of the Ministry of Highways and Road Development and the Northern Provincial Council through the Northern Provincial Road Development Department under the supervision of the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils will be the project implementing agencies of this development project.

The two loan agreements in this connection were signed by Finance and Planning Ministry Secretary P B Jayasundera on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and ADB Country Director Rita O’ Sullivan at the Ministry of Finance and Planning.