The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 300 million loan to improve transport connectivity of the Kakarbhitta-Laukahi road in Nepal to international trade routes, particularly to India and Bangladesh.

At least 95 kilometres (km) of the road from Kakarbhitta to Laukahi will be upgraded from a two-lane to a four-lane dual roadway, ADB said in a statement on Wednesday.

The roads will incorporate climate- and disaster-resilient design features such as higher thermal-resistant pavements and bridges with stringent flood-proofing requirements.

“The project road is along the East-West Highway which forms part of the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation corridor,” said ADB Transport Specialist for South Asia Sin Wai Chong.

“Together with other regional cooperation initiatives under the SASEC framework, better infrastructure, improved connectivity, and safe road networks will boost border trade and logistics and improve the lives of rural communities.”

ADB will provide an additional USD 750,000 technical assistance grant from its Technical Assistance Special Fund to develop climate change mitigation and adaptation guidelines for road projects, bidding documents, performance indicators, and a user handbook on long-term performance-based maintenance.

ADB said it is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty.