State of Piauí - Phase 6 of Brazil Proactive, Safe and Resilient Road Asset Management Program

pipeline

The State of Piaui, located in Brazil’s Northeast, spans 251,529 km² and is home to approximately 3.3 million people. Despite strong growth in agribusiness and expanding transport connectivity, the state faces persistent regional disparities—particularly affecting the northern portion—along with rural poverty, limited access to family farming and tourism destinations, and rising vulnerability to climate change, including severe heat. These infrastructure deficits contribute to economic exclusion and rural-to-urban migration. Sector context Piaui’s paved state road network (approximately 8,800 km), connects agricultural production areas and tourism zones to the federal highway system (e.g., BR-343, BR-316, BR-135). The network faces chronic maintenance gaps, road safety risks, and climate-related degradation. Piaui seeks to modernize road governance through long-term performance-based maintenance contracts (CREMAs and PPPs), supported by institutional reforms and targeted investments in road safety and resilience.The Piaui Estradas Seguras project, a new phase (sixth) within the Multi-Phase Approach (MPA) and the seventh state joining the Learning Agenda, will promote sustainable, safe, and resilient transport infrastructure. The project aims to reduce structural inequality and enhance climate adaptation, while strengthening institutional capacity and leveraging private sector participation.Component 1: Safe and resilient proactive maintenance of state highways via long-term rehabilitation and maintenance contracts (CREMA) (US$ 266 million)Subcomponent 1.1: Proactive maintenance CREMA-DBM. Long-term, performance-based safe and resilient road management contracts for priority state road corridors.Subcomponent 1.2: CREMA-PPP. Structuring of long-term (over 20 years) safe and resilient CREMAs using the PPP framework for selected state roads—largely financed through Private Capital Mobilization (PCM).Component 2: Institutional strengthening for sustainable road asset management, road safety, climate resilience, and decarbonization (US$6 million) Activities will focus on three areas: a) Road Network Management and Monitoring. Technical assistance, studies, acquisition of goods, and capacity building to support: (i) road infrastructure management, including planning and asset management systems and support to the PPP agenda; (ii) road safety, including diagnostics, technical and policy advice (e.g., speed management, active mobility infrastructure); (iii) logistics planning and support, and related studies to improve efficiency, resilience, and connectivity of intermunicipal transport and logistics systems. b) Resilience and Decarbonization. Strengthen state capacity to assess and manage climate-related risks in the road sector, including updating and expanding micro-level risk assessment tools for climate vulnerability analysis and training on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and decarbonization strategies in transport. c) Social Inclusion and Gender. Conduct a gender assessment and develop an action plan to integrate gender considerations into CREMA activities. Measures may include hiring female engineers for project management roles and implementing a pilot training program targeting vulnerable groups, with a focus on social inclusion and gender equality.Component 3: Road works and services (US$21 million)Subcomponent 3.1: Improvements to urban crossings and pedestrian areas in selected hospital and educational facilities (US$6 million). Interventions will improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists, with special attention to areas near schools and health centers, and upgrade urban crossings at critical points. Works will be preceded by technical designs and supervised to ensure quality and effectiveness.Subcomponent 3.2: Rural access infrastructure (local roads) (US$15 million). Enhance the resilience of rural road networks by eliminating critical points on unpaved local roads, particularly in areas with high socioeconomic vulnerability. Public consultations will be held with local communities, including traditional communities such as Quilombolas, to identify and prioritize sections for intervention.Component 4: Project management (US$7 million) Support for staffing, equipment, and operating costs necessary for effective project implementation.