The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a grant amounting to US$86.67 million to help Tajikistan further improve national road connectivity by developing a demonstration green corridor in the country.

The project, due to be completed in 2030, will upgrade the existing degraded two-lane, 49-kilometre Dangara-Guliston Road, widening it to four lanes. The project is the first to pilot the innovative methods promoted in the ADB green roads toolkit.

The Government of Tajikistan will provide counterpart funding of US$23 million while the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide a US$40 million co-financing loan, subject to the EBRD board’s approval in early 2025. The Ministry of Transport will be the executing agency for the project.

“ADB, in partnership with other organizations, promotes safe, accessible, and green transport infrastructure and services in our developing member countries,” says ADB director general for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov. “The Dangara-Guliston Road, which was constructed in the 1930s and reconstructed in the 1970s, will become the first road in Tajikistan to incorporate climate adaptation and specific design elements that account for women and girls.”

To enhance safety, the road will include dedicated cycleways and sidewalks for women with children and people with disabilities. It will also have improved lighting, as well as safe and well-marked crossings – with the design and location of safety features determined through a community co-design process.

The ADB says applying the green roads toolkit to the road design improves the quality of life for those living in the vicinity; strengthens the road network‘s climate resilience and disaster preparedness; reduces pollution; and conserves biodiversity. To answer the lack of electric vehicle chargers in rural areas, the project will fund two pilot charging stations and develop investment frameworks to catalyze private sector investment in a national charging infrastructure rollout.

Developed in collaboration with the International Road Federation and MetaMeta Research, ADB’s green roads toolkit guides the planning, design, construction, and maintenance of roads while ensuring environmentally sustainable practices. The toolkit helps engineers, planners, decision makers, and practitioners balance economic, social, and environmental objectives to make roads in Asia and the Pacific greener.

Tajikistan joined the ADB in 1998. For 26 years, ADB has supported a wide range of sectors from strategic road and energy infrastructure to health, education, agriculture, urban development, public sector management, and finance for a total of over US$2.7 billion in assistance, including over US$2.2 billion in grants.