Today.Az » World news » ADB to provide Uzbekistan with $105M loan
18 April 2019 [16:38] - Today.Az


By Azernews


By Abdul Kerimkhanov

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a loan of $105.3 million to restore and expand the regional water supply system in the Yangiyul and Chinaz districts of the Tashkent region in Uzbekistan, which will provide safe drinking water to over 220,000 people.

The Tashkent region suffers from widespread restrictions on urban services, especially in the area of ??water supply and sanitation. Most of the Soviet-era water supply and sanitation infrastructure is worn out and outdated: about 80 percent of the residents of the two project districts do not receive municipal water supply and are forced to buy or receive unsafe water from various sources, the ADB office in Tashkent noted.

ADB Senior Specialist on Urban Development in Central and West Asia Jung Ho Kim noted that the ADB loan to expand and rehabilitate water supply and sanitation services in these two areas will not only provide safe drinking water but also improve the quality of life for residents of the Tashkent region.

The project includes the construction of 65 km of transport pipelines, 27 km of distribution pipelines, 540 km of distribution networks, 37 reservoirs, 22 water distribution centers, five pressure towers, two administrative buildings, two water quality laboratories, 37,500 water connections through meters, and 4,000 individual wastewater disposal systems, which is the first such project in Uzbekistan.

The total cost of the project is $124.7 million, of which $19.4 million is provided by the government of Uzbekistan. The project is expected to be completed by August 2025.

ADB is committed to achieving prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, and is sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. In 2018, it made commitments of new loans and grants amounting to $21.6 billion. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members, 49 of which are from the region.

Since joining ADB in 1995, Uzbekistan has received 70 loans totaling $7.4 billion, including two private sector loans totaling $225 million.

ADB also provided $6 million in equity investments, $218 million in guarantees, and $87.3 million in technical assistance grants.

The Bank signed five loans totaling $1.1 billion in 2018, to improve energy efficiency and primary health care services, access to finance for farmers and fruit and vegetable producers, and access to drinking water in western Uzbekistan.



Copyright © Today.Az