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EBRD finances road repairs and upgrades in Eastern Europe

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a sovereign loan of up to US$86 million (€65 million) to Bosnia and Herzegovina to support an infrastructure programme aimed at repairing and upgrading the country’s road network, which has been damaged by severe floods in recent years. The improvements to the network will support regional connectivity, making it easier for domestic companies to transport their products to local and regional customers. Supporting regional integratio
July 15, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a sovereign loan of up to US$86 million (€65 million) to Bosnia and Herzegovina to support an infrastructure programme aimed at repairing and upgrading the country’s road network, which has been damaged by severe floods in recent years.

The improvements to the network will support regional connectivity, making it easier for domestic companies to transport their products to local and regional customers. Supporting regional integration is one of the EBRD’s three main strategic priorities.

The EBRD loan will be extended to the public company Roads of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The European Investment Bank and the World Bank are expected to provide parallel financing for other road sections under the company’s priority investment programme.

Due to the mountainous terrain, roads are the main means of transport in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with 70 per cent of cargo and 90 per cent of passengers carried on its roads. The EBRD loan will contribute to the improvement of service and traffic safety on the country's road network.

The EBRD funds will not only support road improvements but also measures to strengthen the company’s management, enhance procurement procedures, upgrade road traffic safety systems and procedures, introduce measures to increase climate change resilience and improve the company’s economic performance. The state-owned firm is in charge of the construction, rehabilitation, maintenance and protection of a network of 2,000 km of main roads in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The European bank is also stepping up its support for a road rehabilitation programme in the Sarajevo Canton from US$22 million (€16.5 million) to a total of UAS$30 million (€22.5 million).

The extra funding, which become necessary due the challenging nature of the works, will enable the completion of the challenging works on the southern longitudinal road which will improve the traffic flow in and out of the Bosnian capital for private road users as well as for businesses.

Better transport connections will strengthen the local economy and support its regional integration in line with the EBRD’s current strategic priorities. The improvement of the road network will also alleviate the burden of road traffic on the environment.
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