Uzbekistan, Tashkent, April 25 /Trend, D. Azizov/
The Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) and the Uzbek government signed a loan agreement worth $20.4 million.
The loan will be assigned for a project to reconstruct a 73-kilometer section of the Guzar-Chim-Kukdala Motorway (4P87) in the south of Uzbekistan.
The source said the loan is assigned for a period of 20 years, including 5-year preferential period with annual interest rate of 2.5 percent plus 0.5 percent needed for the coverage of administrative and other costs.
The reconstruction works are expected to begin in the second half of the year.
The project, valued at a total of $80 million, will be financed at, apart from the KFAED loan, the expense of money to be assigned by the Government of Uzbekistan and a number of other Arab financial institutes.
A total of 2,306 kilometers of motorways are to be reconstructed and road infrastructure is to be developed (total spending is $3.395 billion) in Uzbekistan in 2011-2015.
The program of construction of the Uzbek national motorway assumes construction of four first-class motorway sections with the total extent of 1,500 kilometers and total value of around $2.6 billion.
The program is to be financed at the price of state budget money ($1.68 billion) and loans to be assigned by international financial institutes.
The KFAED was established in 1961 and is the Kuwaiti Government's agent for the provision of technical and financial assistance to developing countries. The Fund's financial activity spreads over practically the entire social-economic branches of state-borrowers.
In accordance with the terms of the Memorandum of cooperation signed by the KFAED and the Government of Uzbekistan in 2004, the Kuwaiti Fund provides financial assistance to Uzbekistan in the implementation of railway, water supply, power supply, and irrigation projects.