Central Highlands Connectivity Improvement Project

The development objective of the Central Highlands Connectivity Improvement Project for Vietnam is to improve the connectivity, safety and climate-resilience of the National Highway 19. The proposed Project will be financed by an IDA credit of US 150 million dollars and counterparts’ funds of US 3.7 million dollars to finance the following components, and will build on the lessons and results from previous World Bank-financed transport projects while expanding into new areas of engagement to address road safety and climate change. The Project will finance the following two components. The first component, Road improvements will support the physical improvement of three sections of NH19 including pavement rehabilitation, widening of the road with paved shoulders, widening of lanes and features for the safe sharing of the road by users, including through the addition of dedicated motorcycle lanes, and reinforcement of slopes, to improve road connectivity, safety and to ensure sustainability of road assets. The second component, implementation support through the following interventions: The provision of technical support for Project implementation, including overall detailed engineering design, construction supervision, financial audits, environmental and social management, and monitoring and evaluation. The Bank will provide enhanced implementation support and technical assistance to both components of the project through Bank-executed activities funded from the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery, and the Global Road Safety Program, as described below: a) Bank- executed activities related to road safety supported from the Global Road Safety Program (GRSF) and Bank-executed activities related to climate resilient activities with support from the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GDFRR).