Thanks to a new $75 million grant from the International Development Association (IDA), approved by the World Bank's Board of Directors on Thursday, more than 350,000 Haitians living in rural areas will benefit from improved access to all-weather roads, local markets and health centers in the South, South-East and Nippes departments.

About 61 percent of the population was living further than 2km from an all-weather road in 2015 and most rural roads remain in very poor condition and barely passable. To develop the road network and achieve intercity connectivity by 2021, the government has set an ambitious target to build 4000 km of roads.

The Haiti Rural Accessibility and Resilience project will rehabilitate critical segments of the rural road network, improving road conditions and road safety in these areas. This will particularly benefit vulnerable communities, including women traders who travel extensively for the livelihoods of their families.

The second project Improving Haiti’s Public Financial Management and Statistical Information focuses on strengthening Haiti’s capacity to produce, disseminate, and use more accurate and timely budgetary and financial data. Financed by an IDA grant of US$15 million, it will help improve budget management and oversight by putting in place an Integrated Financial Information Management System, strengthening public financial management institutions such as the Court of Accounts, the Procurement Board, and the Anti-Corruption Agency, and will support citizen engagement in the use of public resources.

“The two grants approved today will make a difference for people in Haiti.  Roads are windows of opportunity that transform people’s lives as well as the economy.  Better budget and accounting systems are key to improve service delivery for all citizens and strengthen transparency and accountability,” said Anabela Abreu, World Bank Country Director for Haiti. “These are two important priorities for the government”.

The Haiti Rural Accessibility and Resilience project will be implemented by the Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Communications while the Improving Haiti’s Public Financial Management and Statistical Information project will be implemented by the Ministry of Economy and Finance over a period of 5 years.

Learn more about IDA :

The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), helps the world’s poorest countries by providing grants and low to zero-interest loans for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives.

HL/ HaitiLibre