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World Bank approved additional loan on Wednesday in the amount of EUR 13.4 million (US$ 15 million equivalent) allocated to the Lifeline Road Network Improvement Project (LRNIP) in Armenia to help improve accessibility to markets and social services through the rehabilitation of an additional 61 km of the road network, as well as its climate resilience and safety m

As the press statement released by the Bank said, about 40 percent of the roads in Armenia remain in poor condition, and one-third of the rural population lacks access to an all-weather road. Trade from rural areas is held back due to restricted connectivity to markets and poor road conditions that can result in substantial opportunity losses for some communities.

According to the source, the additional financing will also help Armenia improve road safety and asses the real cost of road crashes to people’s lives and the economy. This will be implemented through connecting all key road safety stakeholders with a consolidated modern crash data collection and management system, as well as capacity building in road safety management.

The proposed additional financing will raise the total length of roads to 450 km, 299 km of which have already been rehabilitated. Total financing for this project is EUR 16.75 million, of which EUR 3.35 million will be Government contribution. The World Bank will provide EUR 13.4 million (US$ 15 million equivalent) through an IBRD loan of variable spread, with a 14.5-year grace period and a total repayment term of 25.5 years.