AfDB and Tanzania Sign U.S.$ 233 Million Loan Agreements for Transport Sector Projects

20 April 2010
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African Development Bank (Abidjan)
press release

Tunis — The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group and Tanzania have signed two loan agreements amounting to USD 233.3 million to finance a major rail and road transport project in the country.

The loans will be used to finance the Dar-es-Salaam-Isaka-Kigali/Keza-Musongati Railway Project Study, estimated at USD 2.5 million (Units of Accounts-UA 1.66 million*) and the Road Sector Support Project Phase I, estimated at US 230.8 million (UA 152 million).

The agreements were signed on behalf of the Bank by the AfDB Tanzania Field Office Resident Representative, Sipho Moyo, while the Permanent Secretary at the Tanzanian finance ministry, Ramadhani M. Khijjah, signed for his country.

The Dar-es-Salaam-Isaka-Kigali/Keza-Musongati Railway Study project aims at updating previous studies and incorporating information that was not available at the time, preparing technical designs and proposing the best financing and management instruments based on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).

Phase I of Road Sector Support Project is the Bank's response to the first phase of the Transport Sector Investment Programme (TSIP) which reflects the objectives of the Tanzania Development Vision 2025, the National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP) or MKUKUTA/MKUZA and the Joint Assistance Strategy for Tanzania (JAST).

The project will improve transport services between Iringa and Dodoma as well as between Tunduru and Namtumbo. It will also support the restructuring of the communications ministry in Zanzibar and strengthen TANROADS.

The project has incorporated soft components like road safety, HIV/AIDS monitoring, sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis mitigation and implementation of the Environment and Social Management Plan (ESMP).

According to Ms. Moyo, "this is a project with huge positive implications for poverty reduction and regional integration and if the government can expedite the fulfillment of the conditions for entry into force, and the conditions precedent to first disbursement for early operations effectiveness, its economic impact will be significant".

* UA 1 = USD 1.51 824 as at 20/04/2010

Contacts

Felix Njoku

Read the original article on African Development Bank (AfDB).

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