Announcement of Twenty Million Dollars for Highway Development in Upper Volta on July 2, 1976

World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A. • Telephone: (202) 393-6360 IDA NEWS RELEASE NO. 77/3 JULY 2, 1976 $20 MILLION FOR HIGHWAY DEVELOPMENT IN UPPER VOLTA The International Development Association (IDA), an affiliate of the World Bank, has today approved a $20 'million credit to help finance a third highway project in Upper Volta. The project wi 11 reconstruct to· paved standard the Banfora-Bobo Diou1asso- Hounde road (183 km) which is the most important primary road in the southwest. Government's present development strategy is based to a significant extent on de- • veloping the southwest, the most important agricultural region of the country . The Banfora-Bobo Dioulasso road will support this regional development. dition, the road section forms part of the country's major transport access con- In ad- necting Bobo-Dioulasso, the commercial center of the region, with the capital, Ouagadougou, and is part of a major international route to the coast at Abidjan and through Upper Volta to eastern Mali. The project also provides for a road maintenance study, preinvestment studi~s, and technical assistance for strength- ening the Department of Transport (DOT) and assisting the Center for the Promotion of Upper Volta Enterprise (OPEV) with the development of the domestic ciJil works industry. The project is scheduled to be completed in 1979 at a total esti-mated cost of $29.2 million. The IDA credit to Upper Volta is for 50 years, including 10 years of grace. • It is interest free, except for a service charge of 3/4 of 1% to meet IDA 1 s ad- ministrative costs. NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents. FORM NO. 1121 (5-76) T EC HN I CAL DAT A PROJECT: COUNTRY: TOTAL COST: Third Highway Upper Volta $29.2 million • IDA FINANCING: $20 million, standard !DA terms OTHER FINANCING: Government of Upper Volta IMPLEMENTING ORGANIZATION: Ministry of Public Works, Transport,Urban Development and Architecture (MPWUT), Ouagadougou, Upper Volta PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The project, carried out over 3 years, 1976-1979 will comprise: reconstruction to paved standards of the Banfora-Bobo Dioulasso-Hounde road (183 km), including supervision of construction (this constitutes the bulk of the project); procurement of (i) equipment for vehicle weight control, including provision of fixed facilities for installa~ion and (ii) traffic counting equipment; consul ting services for: (i) a study of road maintenance. and (ii) pre-investment studies for about 150 km of roads to be defined; and tech- nical assistance for: (i) strengthening the Department of Transport (DOT) and (ii) assisting the Center for the Promotion of Upper Volta Enterprise (OPEV) in promotion of the domestic civil works industry. PROCUREMENT: Physical implementation of the project is expected to start in September 1976. Road construction works will be carried out in accordance with World Bank guidelines. Equipment for vehicle weight control and traffic counting will be procured on the basis of international competi- tive bidding in accordance with World Bank guidelines. Suppliers will be required to train local personnel in the use of this equipment. Studies will be executed by .consultants selected in agreement with, and under terms of reference and conditions satisfactory to the Association. CONSULTANTS: About 35 man-months of consultant services will be re- quired to develop a program of road maintenance and about 170 man-months wi 11 be required for supervision of road construction works. About 30 man-months are provided for technical assistance to OPEV and about 30 man- months for technical assistance to DOT. About 65 man-months are provided for • feasibility studies covering 150 km of roads ECONOMIC RATE OF RETURN: 18% ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: September 1979 - 0 -