$87m ADB loan to improve basic services in 35 towns
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the government yesterday signed a loan agreement of 87 million US dollar to improve the basic services and infrastructure in municipal towns of Bangladesh.
Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) and Paul J Heytens, country director of ADB, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides at the ERD.
As many as 3.8 million people are expected to benefit from the second urban governance and infrastructure improvement sector project which will expand access to and delivery of water, sanitation, solid waste management and other urban services in an initial 35 targeted municipal towns, including slum areas. More towns will be included as the project is implemented.
The project expects increases in income, employment and land values in all participating towns by 2015, with 60 percent of residents in targeted slums to have access to improve services.
The loan, sourced from ADB's special funds will be released in phases. The fund disbursements to each town are performance based and are linked in governance reform and improvement in urban services. The project will be carried out from 2009 to 2014 in three phases.
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