A loan of US$200 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will assist fund a major ?highway improvement project in China's northeast, according to a report from ADB on Monday.

 

The project will develop an integrated road network by upgrading a 428-kilometer stretch of the Jixi-Nehe highway in Heilongjiang Province and 170 kilometers of rural roads linking the highway, the report said.

 

Running across the province the 775-kilometer Jixi-Nehe corridor connects the eastern and western parts of the northeast province. More than half of the highway is in poor condition. ?

 

"The project will help improve transport efficiency and safety, expand the transport network of Heilongjiang and improve access for income-generating opportunities and social services," said Eunkyung Kwon, an ADB Principal Transport Specialist.

 

ADB had, up to the end of last year, approved US$6.37 billion in loans to help develop road infrastructure in China.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 1, 2006)