The funds will be used to finance the refurbishment of up to 500 km of roads in rural areas of Albania. The investment is part of a wider national program to rehabilitate 1,500 km of regional and local roads.
TIRANA, March 9 – With one of Europe’s highest accidents rate per capita and woefully inadequate rural roads, Albania will use a 50 million euro loan by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to improve the situation, officials said this week.
The EBRD said the sovereign loan to Albania will support the modernization and improvement of transport infrastructure in Albania by financing the rehabilitation of regional and local roads in the country.
The funds will be used to finance the refurbishment of up to 500 km of roads in rural areas of Albania. The European Investment Bank will provide a loan for the same amount to co-finance the project.
The same project is also supported by 33 million euros in grant financing by the European Commission under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance program and an additional 4 million technical assistance grant from the Western Balkans Investment Framework.
“This project is of paramount importance for Albania’s further economic development,” EBRD Transport Director Sue Barrett said. “Improved transport infrastructure in rural areas will facilitate the access of communities to essential services and economic markets, raising the competitiveness of local companies and improving living standards in small towns and villages.”
Over half of Albania’s population is concentrated in rural areas, the majority of whom are engaged in the agricultural sector. But the poor condition of rural roads in the country is hindering the development of the private sector in small towns and villages, limiting the competitiveness of agribusiness companies.
The investment is part of a wider national program to rehabilitate 1,500 km of regional and local roads, financed on a parallel by the World Bank, OPEC Fund, the Council of Europe Bank and potentially other financiers.
“The financing mobilized under the EBRD’s leadership will support important road rehabilitation works, which will bring the communities living in rural areas closer to markets and services,” Finance Minister Ridvan Bode said in a statement.
The EBRD has so far invested 120 million euros for the modernization of transport infrastructure in Albania. Overall the bank has committed to date around 550 million euros in various sectors of the country’s economy, mobilizing additional investments of close to 1 billion euros.
