The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved $50m in funds for the rehabilitation of a key road corridor located in the Kyrgyz Republic.

The corridor is the core trading link between Kyrgyz Republic and the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

ADB has sanctioned a $28m loan and its concessional Asian Development Fund will provide a $22m grant, while the government of Kyrgyz Republic will supply $12.5m for the $62.5m road corridor project.

The rehabilitation project represents the second stage of a continuing upgrade programme for the Bishkek-Torugart Road. Nearly 50% of the country’s overall trade with the PRC is carried out on this road.

The project involves construction of a border control facility, rehabilitation of 75km of a two-lane road and skills development and training for road engineering students of local universities.

The Bishkek-Torugart road passes from Torugart located on the Kyrgyz-PRC border, to Bishkek close to Kazakhstan’s border. The corridors represent a major element of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Programme an ADB-supported proposal.

The principal transport specialist in the Central and West Asia Department of ADB Prianka Seneviratne said that rehabilitating the road will increase the speed and reliability of passenger and freight flows.

“Improving transport infrastructure and border operations in the Kyrgyz Republic will lower the cost of domestic transport and international traffic, as well as transit traffic, and it supports the objective of increased trade and integration with large markets in South Asia, the PRC, the Russian Federation and Turkey,” Seneviratne added.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications is responsible for execution of the project, which is expected to be complete by December 2013.