ADB, Cambodia Sign Loans to Improve Irrigation and Disease Control Systems

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA (10 November 2015) – Cambodia and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) today signed loan and grant agreements totaling $64 million for two projects which will further improve the country’s irrigation schemes and malaria control and monitoring systems. 

The agreements, signed by Cambodia’s Minister of Economy and Finance, Aun Pornmoniroth, and ADB Cambodia Resident Mission Officer-in-Charge, Jan Hansen, cover the Uplands Irrigation and Water Resources Management Sector Project and additional financing for the Second GMS Regional Communicable Diseases Control Project.  

“The two projects will increase farm productivity and boost incomes for local farmers by improving irrigation systems, and help the government strengthen health services to prevent the spread of malaria,” said Mr. Hansen. 

The $60 million loan for the Uplands Irrigation and Water Resources Management Sector Project will support the government’s efforts to increase agricultural production by rehabilitating, modernizing, and climate-proofing irrigation systems in Kampong Thom and Battambang provinces. By 2021, the total cultivated area for both dry and wet seasons will have more than doubled to 29,500 hectares (ha) from 13,500 ha in 2015, and three irrigation systems will have achieved a 100% increase in their efficiency.  

The $4 million grant allocated for Cambodia under the addtional financing for the Second GMS Regional Communicable Diseases Control Project, provided by the Regional Malaria and Other Communicable Disease Threats Trust Fund, will strengthen the national malaria programs and expand the regional malaria surveillance and response system, focusing on border districts and information exchanges between Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, and Viet Nam.

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 2014, ADB assistance totaled $22.9 billion, including cofinancing of $9.2 billion.