Rural Infrastructure Programme VI (RIP VI)

active

The Rural Infrastructure Program, Phase VI project is intended to consolidate and expand the positive results of the previous project phases. This will continue the proven positive contribution of the previous phases to economic and social development and to poverty reduction among the rural population in the program region. To this end, rural roads in particular are to be rehabilitated and made accessible all year round. Further promotion of economic activity and income generation will be achieved through the construction of central markets. In addition, the need for other infrastructure that represents a bottleneck for the development of the villages along the road construction measures, e.g. year-round and clean drinking water supply, sewage disposal and sanitation facilities, as well as irrigation, will also be examined. The design of the construction measures will take into account the increased challenges posed by climate change (climate resilience). The new program phase will implement measures in the four new provinces that were already the regional focus in the last two phases. These are the northwestern provinces of Banteay Meanchey, Otdar Meanchey, Battambang and Preah Vihear. These provinces were suggested by the partner and the need was confirmed by a socio-economic analysis as part of a feasibility study. Selection criteria included poverty, population growth, availability and condition of the road infrastructure, effects of climate change, access to markets, schools and health stations. In two of the four provinces (Banteay Meanchey, Otdar Meanchey), the German TC is also active with a new phase of the RED program. Even after completion of all measures from the last RIP phases, the need for improved rural infrastructure in these provinces is still high. The project therefore fits consistently with the objectives of the national Cambodian strategy for rural development. In order to further improve sustainability and further strengthen capacities, the responsible Ministry for Rural Development (MRD) is supported by an accompanying A&F measure worth EUR 0.8 million. The development and application of a modern and computer-aided maintenance management system, which was already supported in the last phases, will be continued as part of the A&F measure. Furthermore, the training measure will support the department in the MRD responsible for road maintenance and the establishment of the professional operation of a material testing laboratory financed from own resources. Finally, both the A&F measure and the investment support the personnel capacity of the executing agency in Phnom Penh and in the project provinces in the areas of project management, climate change adaptation and maintenance. The exact scope of the measures will be examined on site and agreed with the Cambodian partners. To finance the measures, an FC grant of EUR 5.1 million is initially proposed. Since the expected need for rural infrastructure in the target provinces is likely to be significantly higher, a stock check of investment measures amounting to EUR 20 million is proposed.