France Provides Rs. 12.3 Billion Soft Loan as Co-Financing for BRT-Red Line

Noor Ahmed, Secretary of Economic Affairs Division (EAD), and H.E. Marc Barety, Ambassador of France, along with Philippe Steinmetz, Country Director of the French Agency for Development (AFD), signed the Credit Financing Agreement worth 65 million Euros (Rs. 12.3 billion) to co-finance with Asian Development Bank (ADB), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), and Green Climate Fund (GCF).

France, through the French Agency for Development, is providing technical and financial support in the energy and urban development sectors in Pakistan. Since 2016, 850 million Euros has been committed to financial support.

Subsequent Project Agreement was signed between AFD, Sindh Mass Transit Authority, Transport and Mass Transit Department of Sindh, and TransKarachi for the implementation with regards to the BRT project.

In addition to the 26.6 km corridor infrastructure, this project entails the following:

• Substantial financial efforts made by development agencies for a higher impact on people’s livelihoods. It will be one of the very first collaborative operations for AIIB and GCF in Pakistan on urban development.
• It will be effective on climate change mitigation, the choice made for the bio-methane hybrid bus technology, powered by a dedicated waste methanization plant. This technology combined with the massive transport supply will further limit CO2 emissions from the public transport system.
• This urban development project has a holistic street approach, including organization and facilities for all public spaces along the BRT corridor.
• It contains Gender and Social Inclusion dimensions through the adoption of good practices in accessibility and gender mainstreaming. Also, the project includes a support component for the transition of the existing bus sector with the integration of informal operators into the new system, which is an essential prerequisite for their proper and full commissioning.