Mali Connectivity and Road Resilience Project (Mali-NSS)

active

Prospective

The project aims to rehabilitate the Diema-Sandare section (137.668 km) of Mali's Northern Bamako-Dakar Corridor (NBDC) and upgrade it to climate-resilient standards due to its high vulnerability to climate change impacts, accelerated degradation, and crucial role in sustaining the local and national economy. Additionally, the project will finance: (i) 11 km of urban roads to climate-resilient standards in the cities of Diema and Sandare; and (ii) 200 km of rural roads to climate-resilient standards in the Nioro and Kayes regions around the area of influence of the Diema-Sandare section of the NBDC. These targeted investments will enhance connectivity between the main corridor's section of interest, its secondary cities, and surrounding rural areas.The project will also support the development of technical studies and instruments in compliance with the environmental and social standards for the 400 km Douentza – Gao section of the RN-16 and the 400 km Segou-Sevare section of the RN-6 given their strategic importance within Mali’s priority road corridors.Upgrading the Diema-Sandare section of the NBDC will ensure year-round climate-adaptive connectivity along this segment of the corridor, further supporting regional trade, as the NBDC corridor facilitates most of the country's passenger and freight transportation, managing approximately 80 percent of Mali's imports and exports. Improved road access in agricultural zones will facilitate better supply of inputs to farmers and enhance the marketing of agricultural products. By rehabilitating selected urban and rural roads vulnerable to climate change for all-weather access, the project will reduce isolation, strengthen connectivity, and address inter-community disparities contributing to social discontent. The project will also finance the development of socioeconomic infrastructure, which will reinforce social cohesion through a participatory approach for site selection and design of small-scale social infrastructure and facilities, and interactive communication campaigns to strengthen citizen engagement. Additionally, the project aims to enhance institutional capacity of the stakeholders in the road sector through training, research development, modernization of tools, and recruitment of young professionals. It will also assess the current road maintenance programming and financing framework and propose strategies to improve it with a special focus on climate resilience and sustainability.The project will be structured around three components: (i) Component 1: Climate-resilient corridor development; (ii) Component 2: Development of socioeconomic infrastructure and improvement of rural accessibility; and (iii) Component 3: Institutional strengthening to the road sector and project management. The Proposed Operation will also include a Contingent emergency response component (CERC).

World Bank Group

Project

Road, Raw Materials, Government