Road Sector Climate Resilience Program SOP-1

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Bolivia is among the countries most affected by climate-related disasters and creating a national road program to address climate resilience and road safety in an inclusive manner is vital to support the country’s long-term development program. The proposed Road Sector Climate Resilience Program (RSCRP) (the Program) is conceived as a Series of Projects (SOP) with the overarching objective of developing a national program to improve climate risk and road safety management in the road sector. Although capacities for improving climate resilience in the transport sector have shown progress in recent years, the Program aims to consolidate and boost the existing capacities through the development and implementation of an institutional and infrastructure management strategy with climate resilience as a key principle.The first Project of the series (SOP-1 or the Project) will provide the first steps towards a multi-year capacity building process aimed at strengthening Bolivia’s road sector climate resilience management. ABC manages the primary road network, and the World Bank is familiar with its capabilities and weaknesses, while there is limited knowledge of the abilities of the departmental and municipal administrative entities to respond to natural hazards and build up climate resilience on the road network. As a result, the World Bank is looking to assess the different institutions and build capacities within Bolivia (it could be within ABC or any other relevant organization). This will allow placing specialized data, units, teams, or key personnel within its institutions to ensure the acquired experience and know-how can be used in future projects. Eventually, this will lead to the effective implementation of the proposed Program that will systematically update the road sector for climate resilience.The first Project of the series also responds to the request by the Government to address three specific road sections in urgent need of rehabilitation. Not only do the selected road segments require reconstruction or replacement to become more resilient to climate change and avoid potential incidents or disruptions, but they are also essential parts of the RVF for connecting key parts of the country.