Rural Roads Improvement Project II (RRIP II) [NDF C63]

RRIP II aims to rehabilitate about 1031 km of rural roads in nine provinces to paved condition. These nine provinces are populated by a large proportion of Cambodia’s rural poor.

Cambodia
Rural Roads Improvement Project II (RRIP II)
Ref. NDF C63

EUR 4.0 million
Project Period 2014-2019
Partner agency: Asian Development Bank

The expected outcome is to provide these poor rural provinces with a safer, climate resilient and cost-effective rural road network with all-year access to markets, jobs and social services. The project will also support a sustainable road maintenance regime in the Ministry of Rural Development (MRD), a community based road safety program, an HIV/AIDS and human trafficking prevention and awareness program, and climate change adaptation measures.

Objectives

The RRIP II comprises five components:
• Rural roads improvements - improvement of about 1,200 km of rural roads to climate resilient paved condition, includes also green planning/planting.
• Rural road asset management - improve rural road asset management in a sustainable manner through a strong capacity-building program.
• Rural roads safety and community awareness program - increase the awareness and application of road safety and safeguards.  
• Project management support - strengthen the capacity of MRD to provide efficient project management support for project implementation.
• Connectivity improvements for Mekong river islands - includes two sub-components: a) rehabilitate roads and jetties within a 5-island cluster in the Mekong River; and b) develop a climate change adaptation framework.

NDF will be the sole financier of sub-component b under component five, and in additional jointly finance green planning activities under component one. Green planning activities aim to increase the vegetation cover around the rural roads, which will increase water infiltration of the project areas and minimize erosion and flooding problems.

Sub-component b) serves as a pilot and aims to develop a climate change adaptation framework with a multi-sectoral adaptation approach. The adaptation framework seeks to support the strategic directions identified in MRD’s draft Strategic Plan of Rural Development for Climate Change Adaptation in Cambodia (SPRD-CCA). The strategic directions in the draft SPRD-CCA, and those of this framework, include: (i) ensuring transport mobility and access to critical services during extreme events, particularly floods; (ii) ensuring safe access to water during climate extremes, such as drought; and (iii) ensuring sustainable and diverse rural livelihoods to reduce vulnerability to climate change. The multi-sectoral approach is a rather innovative approach to rural roads development, as it focuses not only on improving road’s resilience to climate change but also looks at how reduced mobility, due to climate change, negatively affects other sectors and people’s livelihoods. The intention is to pilot test this multi-sectoral approach and draw lessons which can be replicated in other similar remote rural areas where climate vulnerabilities are identified.

Sub-component b) comprises five activities:
1) Income Diversification for Climate Resilience
2) Improving Water Access and Reducing Vulnerability of Agriculture to Climate Change
3) Income through Renewable Energy
4) Improved Health and Safety during Climate Extremes
5) Inclusive-growth Strategy for Rural Roads

MRD will be the executing agency for the project.

Financing

The overall project is estimated to cost USD 157.72 million. ADB will provide USD 54 million, Government of Cambodia USD 14.65 million, Government of Australia USD 6.67 million, Government of Korea USD 41 million, Agence Française de Développement USD 36 and NDF USD 5.4 million  (EUR 4 million). The total cost of component 5 is USD 18.65 million.

NDF Contact

Director Jesper Andersen
Telephone +358 10 618 002

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