PESHAWAR, Nov 19: The Asian Development Bank has approved a loan of US$301.2 million for improving the road network in the North-West Frontier Province.

The NWFP Road Development Sector & Sub regional Connectivity Project will increase the access of rural population to economic opportunities and services.

The project will improve 212km of provincial highways and about 700km of rural access roads. It will also finance provincial policy reforms to improve management of roads.

To improve sub regional connectivity, about 310km of national highways, including new access to Afghanistan, and border crossing infrastructure at two border points with Afghanistan will be constructed and improved.

The nearest ports for the landlocked Afghanistan and most of the Central Asian Republics are in Karachi and Gwadar. The bulk of the traffic from northern Afghanistan and the Central Asian Republics enter Pakistan through the Torkham border point and then it uses the national highways to access these ports.

"With stability returning to Afghanistan and growing bilateral trade with Pakistan, the road corridor to be improved under the project will bring significant opportunities for the NWFP to benefit from sub regional trade and economic development," said Hasan Masood, a senior transport specialist at the ADB.

Improved connectivity ensures better and cheaper road transport that plays an important role in providing access to economic opportunities, including labour and product markets, and helps in overcoming geographic isolation and cultural and social barriers, he said. --PPI