ADB,Govt. sign agreements for roads and skills development
Wednesday, 28 May 2014 00:00
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The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Sri Lanka have signed loans totaling $175 million to fund projects to promote skills and improve roads.
“Targeted education for the workers of tomorrow is essential to economic growth but businesses and communities also need good connections to markets, jobs and services,” said ADB Country Director Sri Widowati.
Widowati signed the loans on behalf of ADB while P.B. Jayasundera, Secretary to the Treasury, Ministry of Finance and Planning, signed for the Government of Sri Lanka.
The Government’s Skills Sector Development Program, with support from ADB’s $100 million loan, will help reduce the significant mismatch that exists between the competencies of graduates and the skills needed by employers. This gap means youth unemployment is very high at 17.3%.
In addition, a targeted stipend scheme for disadvantaged groups including the poor, women, and school drop-outs will be introduced in order to increase their participation in skills training in skill shortage areas.
ADB’s loan of $75 million will improve 33.5 km of national highways that link to three interchanges on the Southern Expressway. This will ease congestion on access routes to the Southern Expressway, enabling a smoother flow of people and freight between the southern region and the commercial capital of Colombo, thereby boosting industrial development as supply sources and markets outside the region become more accessible.
ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2013, ADB assistance totaled $21.0 billion, including cofinancing of $6.6 billion.
