The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) Project Information Document (PID) Appraisal Stage | Date Prepared/Updated: 07-Jun-2021 | Report No: PIDA31818 Apr 25, 2021 Page 1 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) BASIC INFORMATION OPS_TABLE_BASIC_DATA A. Basic Project Data Country Project ID Project Name Parent Project ID (if any) Central African Republic P176450 CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project Region Estimated Appraisal Date Estimated Board Date Practice Area (Lead) AFRICA WEST 31-May-2021 25-Jun-2021 Transport Financing Instrument Borrower(s) Implementing Agency Investment Project Financing Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Public Works Planning and Cooperation and Road Maintenance (MTPER) Proposed Development Objective(s) The objective of the project is to: (i) restore basic rural road connectivity in targeted areas; (ii) improve climate resilience and safety of the road corridor from Bangui to the Cameroon border; and (iii) provide the building blocks for improved and resilient road sector management. Components Emergency improvement of basic connectivity in targeted areas Emergency transport corridor improvements Capacity building and project management Contingency Emergency Response Road Safety, Road Asset Management, and Climate resilience OPS_TABLE_FCC The processing of this project is applying the policy requirements exceptions for situations of urgent need of assistance or capacity constraints that are outlined in OP 10.00, paragraph 12. Yes PROJECT FINANCING DATA (US$, Millions) SUMMARY -NewFin1 Total Project Cost 86.50 Total Financing 86.50 of which IBRD/IDA 75.00 Financing Gap 0.00 Apr 25, 2021 Page 2 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) DETAILS -NewFinEnh1 World Bank Group Financing International Development Association (IDA) 75.00 IDA Grant 75.00 Non-World Bank Group Financing Other Sources 11.50 FRANCE: French Agency for Development 11.50 Environmental and Social Risk Classification High Decision The review did authorize the team to appraise and negotiate Other Decision (as needed) B. Introduction and Context Country Context 1. The Central African Republic (CAR) remains one of the poorest and most fragile countries in the world. Since its independence in 1960, CAR has not experienced a sustained period of economic growth or peace. The country was emerging from a prolonged period of conflict, but the security situation has deteriorated since December 2020. CAR faces enormous development challenges related to low gross domestic product (GDP) per capita (US$775, purchasing power parity [PPP] 1), low ranking on the Human Development Index and Gender Inequality Index (ranking near the bottom —188 out of 189 countries in 2020 2 for both indices), low and weak delivery of public services, and weak governance. The country ranks the lowest in the world on the 2020 Human Capital Index (HCI).3 CAR’s HCI value of 0.291 indicates that a child born in CAR today can be expected to be 29 percent as productive when s/he grows up as s/he could have been had s/he enjoyed complete education and full health.4 The population of CAR is 4.8 million, half of whom are 15 years or 1 World Development Indicators consulted in 2019. Currency international dollars (constant 2011). 2 UNDP (United Nations Development Programme). 2020. http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/latest-human-development-index- ranking. 3 World Bank. 2020. The HCI Update of 2020 for West and Central Africa. 4 Learning Poverty is unknown in CAR due to lack of data. ‘Learning Poverty’ means being unable to read and understand a short, age-appropriate text by age 10. This indicator captures both the share of children who have not achieved minimum reading proficiency and the share of children who are out of school. Apr 25, 2021 Page 3 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) younger.5 Poverty has increased in the last decade —from 66 percent in 20086 to 71 percent in 2019.7 2. The signing of the Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation between the Government and 14 armed groups on February 6, 2019, was a positive step toward building peace. This was the eighth peace agreement signed since the outbreak of the conflict in 2013. The agreement did not hold as the post-December 2020 election unrest led to armed clashes which completely disrupted the country, leading to a further deterioration in the humanitarian situation. As of January 20, 2021, more than half of the population needed humanitarian assistance and protection and 40 percent of Central African households are in a situation of acute food insecurity8. As of December 31, 2020, the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) due to the post-elections unrest was estimated at 681,930 which is two percent higher than in 2019. In addition, there were 634,788 refugees representing approximately 13 percent of CAR’s population 9. Many women have experienced gender-based violence (GBV) as sexual violence was used as a tactic during the conflict. 10 In 2011, 58 percent of women reported having been physically abused and 46 percent reported sexual violence. 11 Violence against women has seen an upsurge since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with reported trauma up 69 percent12. 3. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, political instability, and renewed insecurity following the presidential elections are threatening the country’s future economic and development prospects. In CAR, there have been 6,891 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 95 deaths reported as of May 09, 2021.13 Beyond the public health and economic impact of the pandemic, CAR’s transport sector is facing important challenges because of the crisis. Studies suggest that COVID-19 has exacerbated the vulnerability of transport sector workers in Africa, particularly minibus drivers and conductors in the paratransit system. In general, owners of informal minibuses do not absorb demand risks, nor do they have significant fixed costs. On the other hand, minibus drivers and conductors often absorb the risks of plummeting transport demand. Although demand has dropped and is expected to remain below pre-COVID-19 levels for months to come, minibuses continue circulating because they offer the only means of income for a significant number of https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/education/brief/learning-poverty. 5 https://population.un.org/wpp/. 6 World Development Indicators database, accessed in October 2019. 7 World Bank (2019). Central African Republic Economic Update: Strengthening Domestic Revenue Mobilization to Sustain Growth in a Fragile State (English). Washington, DC: 8https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Situation%20Report%20- %20Central%20African%20Republic%20-%2022%20Jan%202021.pdf 9 UNHCR CAR situation as of December 31st 2020. file:///C:/Users/WB517443/Downloads/UNHCR%20- %20Monitoring%20de%20protection%202020%20Final.pdf 10 United Nations (UN). 2019. “Conflict Related Sexual Violence: Report of the United Nations Secretary-General (March 29, 2019).� https://www.un.org/sexualviolenceinconflict/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/report/s-2019-280/Annual-report-2018.pdf. 11 Executive Board of the UNDP, the United Nations Population Fund, and the United Nations Office for Project Services (November 22, 2017). https://www.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/portal-document/CPD_CAF_DPFPACPDCAF8_EN.pdf. 12 UNDP. 2020. Evaluation de l’impact socio-économique de la pandémie de coronavirus (Covid-19) en République Centrafricaine. Mai. https://www.undp.org/content/dam/rba/docs/COVID-19-CO-Response/UNDP-CAR- Socio-Economic-impact-COVID19.pdf 13 https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ Apr 25, 2021 Page 4 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) drivers.14 4. The post-December 2020 election unrest emphasized the criticality of the Bangui – Garoua Boulai Trade corridor for CAR’s economy. Traffic on the corridor was interrupted for weeks due to security reasons. As a result, commodity prices went up in Bangui, and by time traffic resumed in March, the country’s economy was on the brink of collapse. Further, the corridor is critical for maintaining national connectivity and integration between Bangui and the isolated territories of North-Western and North-Eastern CAR. It connects some of CAR’s biggest population centers. During the post-December 2020 election unrest, hundreds of trucks with critical supplies of food products, humanitarian goods and water treatment chemicals were stranded at the border crossing with Cameroon. As a result, the prices of local food products such as palm oil, cassava and beef increased significantly between 16 and 44 percent in Bangui. According to the Price monitoring Bulletin produced by the Central African Institute for Statistics, Economic and Social Studies (ICASEES) with support from the World Bank, during the first week of January 2021 15, the prices of basic imported food products, including milk powder, salt, sugar and onions, spiked from 15 percent to 240 percent in markets surveyed across Bangui, Bimbo and Bégoua. 5. The extreme isolation of rural communities in CAR is a key obstacle to equitable development that needs urgent action. Recent literature suggest that physical inaccessibility is a key factor affecting local conflict risk, as remote areas that are distant from the national capital are shown to be significantly more conflict prone than more accessible parts of a country16. In CAR, much of the country is beyond the reach of the road network and many roads are impassable during the rainy season. This poses a major problem for rural accessibility. The crisis and insecurity have also had a substantial impact on road transport operations: the number of registered vehicles and transport permits have declined dramatically because of looting and insecurity. These concerns have discouraged transport firms from operating in CAR. 6. Years of conflict have caused severe damage and had a debilitating effect on CAR’s road system. A fully functional road network linking CAR to the border of Cameroon is essential to CAR’s economy. It is equally critical to promote peace and ensure national integration. Further, rural roads provide the only connection to medical services, schools, social assistance, and economic opportunities; they are of vital importance for the poor and most vulnerable populations living in isolated areas of CAR, especially in the North-East and the North-West regions. During the rainy season, large communities are cut off from the rest of society for weeks given the current state of the rural road network. This lack of basic connectivity has direct repercussions on the health, education, and livelihood of rural residents. 7. Since the relative improvement of the crisis in 2016, the World Bank has actively supported GoCAR’s infrastructure recovery efforts particularly in the Government’s Plan for Recovery and Peacebuilding (Plan National de Relèvement et de Consolidation de la Paix en Centrafrique, RCPCA) priority areas, using International Development Association (IDA) resources. In close coordination with the donor community, the Bank financed several operations aiming at restoring basic infrastructure and transport connectivity in the country, including, inter alia, the State and Peacebuilding Fund financed Local Connectivity Emergency Project 14 SSATP, “Urban Mobility and COVID-19 in Africa�, August 2020 15 The prices have remained high even after the reopening of the corridor to traffic. 16 Andreas Forø Tollefsen, Halvard Buhaug, Insurgency and Inaccessibility, International Studies Review, Volume 17, Issue 1, March 2015, Pages 6–25, https://doi.org/10.1111/misr.12202 Apr 25, 2021 Page 5 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) (LCEP, P157923), and the Rural Connectivity Project (RCP, P160500). Furthermore, the CAR component of the CEMAC Transport and Transit Facilitation Program (CEMAC-TTFP, P079736) initiated before the crisis, was scaled up to rehabilitate the Bouar-Baoro road section (56 km) of the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor, the gateway to the Port of Douala, which carries about 80 percent of the country’s freight traffic and is the lifeline of the economy. 8. The above-mentioned efforts were slowed by election-related violence and turmoil in most parts of the country following the December 2020 presidential elections. With the help of the donor community, CAR was making good progress towards the restoration of basic transport connectivity when violence erupted during and after the 2020 presidential elections. Large parts of the country were inaccessible due to the presence of rebel groups. Consequently, ongoing works financed under the above-mentioned World Bank projects had to be stopped for several months because of security concerns. The CEMAC-TTFP was closed in February 2021 leaving the country’s main economic corridor with unattended critical needs. 9. Climate change is exacerbating development challenges in CAR, which already experiences extreme weather events and natural hazards like torrential rains, river and urban flooding, extreme heat, water scarcity and droughts.17 Mean annual temperature is projected to increase, while rainfall is projected to become more erratic, in terms of duration, intensity and frequency.18 These changes amplify challenges in the agriculture sector, water and food security, and are expected to also impact the transport sector. CAR’s under-designed and under-maintained transport infrastructure is particularly vulnerable to natural hazard and climate change impacts. Enhancing the resilience of basic infrastructure like transport, through rehabilitation, construction, and maintenance practices observant of climate resilient standards, provides reliable connectivity year-round and plays a crucial role in the resilience of vulnerable communities. Sectoral and Institutional Context 10. Under the current GoCAR organization, the Ministry of Public Works, and Road Maintenance (Ministère des Travaux Publics et de l’Entretien Routier, MTPER) is responsible for the road network, including rural roads. The Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation (MTCA) oversees the infrastructure, services and logistics of the transportation sector. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Ministère de l’ Agriculture et du Développement Rural, MADR) is responsible for designing, implementing, and evaluating agricultural, pastoral, and rural development programs and coordinates with MTPER regarding the planning and implementation of rural road projects. 11. Although roads are the main mode of transport in CAR, road density is low. Nearly 2 million rural dwellers are disconnected from the network, leaving them isolated from markets and social services. Road density is estimated at only 1.5 km per 100 km², about one-tenth of the average for Sub-Saharan Africa. Road density is also lower than in neighboring countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (about 7 km per 100 km²). The main road network in CAR is 24,137 km, of which only 855 km is paved. The rural road network is about 15,000 km but it has received little maintenance over the past two decades. As a result, only 16 percent of the rural road network is classified as being in ‘good or fair’ condition. 17 Think Hazard consulted on 10th May 2021. (URL: https://thinkhazard.org/en/report/49-central-african-republic) 18 World Bank Group Climate Change Knowledge Portal. Consulted on 10 May 2021. (URL: https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org/country/central-african-republic) Apr 25, 2021 Page 6 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) 12. Public expenditure on road rehabilitation and maintenance is extremely limited. The Road Maintenance Fund (FER)19 is in charge of financing road maintenance but its resources cover less than 5 percent of the maintenance requirements. A fuel levy provides about 90 percent of FER’s total funding, estimated at XAF4.2 billion in 2020. Other resources include tolls and fines. It is estimated that road maintenance would require at least XAF15 billion per year. The allocation of FER resources is dictated by a rigid regulation and rural roads are only allocated 5 percent of the total. This funding gap is a major hinderance to road asset preservation and results in a road rehabilitation backlog accumulation over the years. While major institutional reform is beyond the scope of the proposed project, it will seek to strengthen the sustainability of its investments through road maintenance activities. 13. The state of CAR’s transport lifeline infrastructure has deteriorated sharply since the onset of the crisis due to inadequate investments and maintenance. As funding has dried up essentially due to the freeze of development partners’ support in this heavily aid-dependent sector, public and parastatal agencies working in the transport sector have been unable to undertake much-needed new investments or even maintain existing infrastructure. Today, the preservation of key sections of the road network is critical in order to maintain connectivity and the subsequent disruption of economic activities. 14. There is an urgent need to finalize the rehabilitation of the Garoua-Boulai – Bangui road corridor which is the economic lifeline20 of CAR and is vital to the country’s food security. The corridor is at great risk of being cut-off during the rainy season if urgent action is not taken to finalize the works started under CEMAC-TTFP to remove physical barriers between Bangui and the Cameroon border. The corridor is critical to providing landlocked CAR access to regional and international markets, promoting greater trade integration within the CEMAC sub-region, and reducing transport costs. Under the recently closed CEMAC-TTFP, the section of the corridor between the border of Cameroon (Garoua-Boulai) and Bouar was successfully rehabilitated; however, following the election-related violence in December 2020, works were stopped for the rest of the corridor. The CEMAC-TTFP subsequently closed in February 2021 leaving the works for the Bouar-Baoro-Bangui section incomplete and vulnerable to climate conditions, mainly because of the absence of a drainage system. 15. The North-Eastern part of CAR is extremely isolated from the rest of the country thus aggravating the conflict situation. There is virtually no functional road infrastructure in this region which has a great agricultural and mining potential. Under the RCP, the Bank is currently supporting the rehabilitation of a section of National Road 8 (RN8) which is a key corridor that cuts through the North-East region and connects to neighboring Sudan. This support strengthens the results achieved by emergency works on the Kaga Bandoro-Ndélé road section (330 km) conducted under the State and Peacebuilding Fund financed Local Connectivity Emergency Project (LCEP, P157923) in partnership with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS); and extends the emergency works approach to the Ndélé-Birao road section (about 440 km). However, to further improve rural connectivity in the North-East, additional investments are urgently needed to connect isolated communities to the road network. The rehabilitation of an additional 68 km of road on RN8 between Birao and Am Dafock, as well as the improvement of a network of about 500 km of rural roads in the Vakaga area have been identified for urgent 19 Through a decision taken by the Ministry of Finance in 2018, the Government of CAR has decided to abolish the direct transfer of road users' fees and fuel levy to the road fund account. Also, the commitment to transfer XAF 350,000,000 per month to FER has not been properly enforced, putting the Road Fund in a situation of funds scarcity. 20 This corridor carries 80 percent of the country’s traffic. It is the major highway for the movement of commodities, goods, an d services to and from the capital. Apr 25, 2021 Page 7 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) rehabilitation to reduce isolation of communities and contribute to peace-building efforts. 16. CAR has among the highest road fatality rates in the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there were 1,543 road fatalities in 2016, or 33.6 per 100,000 people, higher than the 26.8 average for all of Africa.21 As the economy picks up, car ownership is likely to increase rapidly. Without proper road safety measures, traffic fatalities would increase. The main risk factors for injuries include reckless driving, drunken driving, poor road surfaces, inadequate signage, lack of protection for pedestrians, poor speed regulation, inadequate traffic law enforcement, aging vehicle fleet, and weak governance. In theory, the MTCA is responsible for coordinating all relevant ministries and stakeholders, but in practical terms, they lack capacity. The Government recognizes that there is an urgent need to develop road safety policies, implementation mechanisms, and monitoring systems. But technical and financial support are still needed. With regards to the proposed project, road safety risks are rather moderate as most of the road rehabilitation will be on rural roads with low traffic and very limited increase in travel speeds after completion of works. Interventions are focused on providing basic access. Nevertheless, the project will support key road safety activities at the sector level to help CAR address road safety in a cohesive and organized manner involving all public and private stakeholders. Also, the project will support activities to improve road safety on the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor, the gateway to the Port of Douala, through vertical and horizontal traffic signs, speed calming measures and sensitization campaigns. 17. Ongoing efforts under the RCP to improve rural connectivity in selected agriculture production basins must be expanded to unleash some of the unrealized potential of agriculture in CAR. Three areas were identified under the RCP as high-potential agriculture production basins: (a) the North-West basin which includes the Ouham and Ouham-Pendé prefectures; (b) the North-East basin which includes the Bamingui-Bangoran and Vakaga prefectures and the northern portion of Haute-Kotto; and (c) the East Central basin including the prefectures of Nana Gribizi, Kemo, Ouaka and the southern portion of Haute-Kotto. The proposed project will scale-up the interventions of RCP in the following two areas that were prioritized22 under the RCP: • The North-West basin was prioritized by the RCP and by the proposed project due to (a) its large population, over one million inhabitants (about 20 percent of the total population in 2012); (b) its agricultural potential including irrigation and cattle breeding opportunities; (c) its role as one of the hot beds of the crisis; and (d) its strategic location along the corridors connecting Bangui to Cameroon and Chad. The two prefectures of Ouham and Ouham-Pendé used to be major cotton producing areas. The choice of location is based on a strong consensus among the stakeholders representing the roads and agriculture sectors arising out of the consultations. The project will rehabilitate a network of rural roads which have not been maintained for a long period. Some of these roads are part of regional corridors linking CAR to Cameroon and Chad. • The North-East basin was prioritized by the RCP and by the proposed project due to its extreme isolation, with a particular focus on the main access road of this region (Kaga Bandoro-Ndélé-Birao), totaling about 770 km. This road is part of a regional corridor connecting CAR to Sudan. The proposed project would further strengthen the results achieved by emergency works on the Kaga Bandoro- Ndélé road section (330 km) conducted under the State and Peacebuilding Fund financed Local 21 World Health Organization (WHO). Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018. Geneva. WHO. 22 Following technical consultations with the Government held in October 2016, two areas of intervention were prioritized for intervention under the RCP. Apr 25, 2021 Page 8 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) Connectivity Emergency Project (LCEP) (P157923) in partnership with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS); and extend the emergency works approach to the Ndélé-Birao-Am Dafock road section (about 592 km). 18. Low labor force participation is a major gender gap in the road sector in CAR. Although there is no gender disaggregated data available related specifically to the road sector, consultations during RCP project preparation indicated that there is very little participation of women in road operation and maintenance activities in the country. This is still the case despite the ongoing efforts under the RCP and the LONDO project23 to enhance employment opportunities for women in the sector. The project design will scale up the efforts of the previous projects by ensuring that a minimum quota of 50 percent is allocated to women’s participation in Labor Intensive Public Works (LIPW). Furthermore, the project design also includes adequate measures on gender-related risks, including management of labor influx and gender-based violence (GBV) risks. The project will also support mobile childcare to foster women participation in LIPW. C. Proposed Development Objective(s) Development Objective(s) (From PAD) 19. The objective of the project is to: (i) restore basic rural road connectivity in targeted areas; (ii) improve climate resilience and safety of the road corridor from Bangui to the Cameroon border; and (iii) provide the building blocks for improved and resilient road sector management. Key Results 1. Achievement of the project development objective will be assessed through the following PDO indicators: • Objective 1: Restore basic rural road connectivity in targeted areas. a. Average travel time along the road Ndélé-Birao-Am Dafock (days). b. Passability of the road between Ndélé and Am Dafock (Months). c. Number of schools, health centers, and marketplaces in the project areas with improved road access. • Objective 2: Improve climate resilience and safety of the road corridor from Bangui to the Cameroon border. d. Travel time between Bangui and Garoua Boulai (hours). e. Number of days per year of road closure on the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor. f. Number of fatal crashes along the corridor between Bangui and Garoua Boulai. 23 A minimum quota of 33 percent was allocated to women’s participation in labor-intensive works. Apr 25, 2021 Page 9 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) • Objective 3: Provide the building blocks for improved and resilient road sector management. g. Road safety lead agency or central unit is ready to be operational (yes/no). h. Climate informed road asset management strategy is completed and is its action plan is implemented (yes/no). D. Project Description 20. The proposed project is designed to address the emergency need to restore basic transport connectivity in CAR and increase the resilience and safety of the country’s main trade route. To that effect, the proposed project will scale up the activities of the ongoing RCP in the North-Eastern and North-Western parts of CAR and finalize works and activities initiated by the closed CEMAC-TTFP along the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor. Furthermore, the project will finance the strengthening of the technical and institutional capacity of Government entities involved in the project implementation and will support costs associated to the project management. The project includes Euro 10 million (US$11.5 million equivalent) co-financing from the French Development Agency (AFD) which was approved by AFD’s board on December 17, 2020. AFD’s co -financing will contribute to Component 1 along with Bank’s financing. 21. The civil works financed under Components 1 and 2 of the proposed project are designed to enhance the resilience of the transport network and infrastructure to the impacts of natural hazards and climate change: (a) High and increasing temperatures affecting the movement of moisture within soils which can indirectly affect the strength of the gravel roads; and (b) increased and more erratic rainfalls and higher magnitude of flood events requiring larger hydraulic sections for drainage structures (pipes, culverts, ditches, etc.). The key climate-resilient features to be applied to the proposed roads are summarized in Annex 1. 22. The proposed project is structured around the following five components: Component 1: Emergency improvement of basic connectivity in targeted areas (estimated cost of US$64.4 million equivalent, IDA financing of US$52.9 million equivalent, and AFD parallel co-financing of US$11.5 million equivalent) 23. Component 1 will focus on the improvement of roads in two selected intervention areas located in the North-West and the North-East of the country (cf. Section I.A). This component will utilize the same works methodology as the RCP project, which consists of three consecutive phases. The improved roads will be able to ensure adequate service levels under extreme weather conditions, such as high-intensity rainfall and floods. (a) Phase 1: Labor-Intensive Public Works (LIPW) to restore basic connectivity and provide income generating opportunities to local communities. The methodology for selecting the beneficiaries of the LIPW will be the same as the lottery-based approach adopted under the RCP project, which was considered the most transparent by the populations concerned. (b) Phase 2: Mechanized works to tackle more complex pavement and structures works. Works will consist of improving critical infrastructure, such as bridges, and carrying out drainage improvements and road surfacing. Contracts for Mechanized works will also Apr 25, 2021 Page 10 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) include the rehabilitation or improvement of small basic social infrastructure (schools, health centers, water points etc.) along the project roads to be identified during project implementation using a participatory approach24. All these works will be informed with consideration of risks of natural disasters and climate change impacts. (c) Phase 3: Community-based maintenance activities aimed at improving road asset management and climate resilience for the duration of the project’s economic life. The objective is to ensure an effective, and cost-effective maintenance strategy for roads improved by the project, by engaging local communities, thus enhancing the climate resilience of the road infrastructure, and creating jobs for the local communities. 24. Road works, infrastructure design, and maintenance arrangements would also consider climate resilience aspects where possible to enhance the durability of road improvements. Road safety measures will be included in this component as part of Phase 2 mechanized works. Program implementation would require flexibility to consider the potential security concerns. Detailed implementation arrangements are outlined in Section IV. Component 1 has two subcomponents: 25. Subcomponent 1.1: North-West Road Rehabilitation (IDA financing of US$18.3 million). This subcomponent consists of Phase 2 (mechanized works) and Phase 3 (community maintenance works) activities for the rehabilitation of a network of 500 km of rural roads in the North-West basin covering the Ouham and Ouham-Pendé prefectures. Phase 1 works were completed under RCP (cf. Table 1). 26. Subcomponent 1.2: North-East Road Rehabilitation (IDA financing of US$34.0 million; AFD parallel co- financing of US$11.5 million equivalent). This subcomponent consists of : (i) Community maintenance works (phase 3) only25 of the Kaga Bandoro-Ndélé road (333 km); (ii) Phase 2 and Phase 3 works of Ndélé-Birao road (444 km); and (iii) all phases (1, 2, and 3) of works for the Birao-Am Dafock road (68 km), the bypass of St Floris National Park (80 km), and Vakaga area roads (400 km). Under separate contracts, AFD will parallel-finance the improvement of about 200 km of additional roads to scale up the impact of the RCP in the North-East. 27. Subcomponent 1.3: Enhancement of women’s participation in the works financed under component 1 (IDA financing of US$0.6 million equivalent). The objective of this subcomponent is to address the barriers limiting the participation of women in rural road works financed by the project. Under the RCP, participation of women in LIPW has not reached the minimum target of 33 percent mainly because of three factors: (a) the absence of child care services; (b) the reluctance of women to work in the isolated project areas where LIPW are implemented because of security reason; and (c) the negative social pressure regarding women’s involvement in an activity wrongly perceived as reserved for males. This subcomponent will provide mobile community-based childcare services using women with childcare experience who will be paid at the same rate as road workers. The services will be deployed at the same time as LIPW in strategic and secure locations at walking distance from the work sites. A small NGO will be recruited to implement the mobile childcare initiative, including the sensitization of the community on the importance of women’s participation in income-generating activities offered by the project. Monitoring and evaluation of the services will also be the responsibility of the NGO. With regards to security, priority will be given to women for deployment to less remote and more secure areas where the quota 24 Consultations will be held to identify and prioritize the basic infrastructure based on available budgets. There will be an emphasis on infrastructure that would foster greater women empowerment. 25 LIPW (Phase 1) and mechanized works (Phase 2) were respectively completed under the LCEP and ongoing under RCP. Apr 25, 2021 Page 11 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) assigned to women will be allowed to exceed the minimum 50 percent26. Component 2: Emergency transport corridor improvements (estimated cost US$9.0 million equivalent financed by IDA) 28. Component 2 will support the finalization of works and activities initiated under the closed CEMAC-TTFP project along the lifeline Bangui-Garoua Boulai corridor (cf. Section B). It aims to remove physical barriers on the road corridor linking Bangui to the Cameroon border and finalize key transport facilitation infrastructure to ensure a safe and efficient movement of goods and people. Component 2 is structured around four subcomponents: 29. Subcomponent 2.1: Finalization of the Baoro-Bouar road works (IDA financing of US$3.0 million). This subcomponent will finalize the works of the Baoro-Bouar (56 km) section of the corridor. The pavement structure was fully rehabilitated in 2020 under the CEMAC-TTFP. The proposed project will increase the climate resilience of the road through the provision of a climate-resilient drainage system (37 kilometers of drainage ditches), and the protection of slopes and embankments using bioengineering measures. 30. Subcomponent 2.2: Spot improvement and climate adaptation works on 140 km of roads between Bangui and Baoro (IDA financing of US$3.0 million). The objective is to ensure reliability of the corridor and eliminate the risk of the road being cut-off during the rainy season due to infrastructure and signage being damaged by flooding, heavy precipitation, and erosion. Works will mainly consist of patching potholes and protecting/rehabilitating hydraulic structures. Works will also include the restoration and installation of road signs along the corridor Bangui-Garoua Boulai. 31. Subcomponent 2.3: Road safety measures on the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor (IDA financing of US$1.0 million). This subcomponent will finance the installation of horizontal and vertical signage, and the deployment of traffic calming measures (mainly speed bumps) throughout agglomerations along the Bangui- Garoua Boulai corridor, including on the Baoro-Bouar and Bangui-Bouar sections. These measures will have a physical effect on motorists and their vehicle resulting in reduced speeds. 32. Subcomponent 2.4: Transport facilitation infrastructure (IDA financing of US$2.0 million). This subcomponent will finalize miscellaneous small transport facilitation infrastructures along the Bangui – Garoua Boulai corridor that were left uncompleted by the CEMAC-TTFP, including: (i) the finalization of the Beloko platform ; (ii) the improvement of the Bouar Bus station; (iii) the works of the Yaloké rest area; and (iv) the construction of axle load control stations on the corridor. Infrastructure will be designed to address climate change impacts through the use drainage systems and appropriate coverage for passenger comfort year-round. Component 3: Road Safety, Road Asset Management, and Climate resilience (IDA financing of US$7.8 million equivalent). 33. In addition to the emergency improvements under component 1, aimed at restoring basic connectivity in rural areas, the proposed project is part of a gradual approach to providing the building blocks for a resilient, safe, and sustainable road infrastructure. To that effect, Component 3 will support the following activities: 26 The overall quota will be adjusted to ensure a parity between male and female. Apr 25, 2021 Page 12 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) 34. Subcomponent 3.1: Road Safety (IDA financing of US$2.5 million). This subcomponent will finance the following activities: (a) support to the development of a national road safety strategy and the establishment of a road safety lead agency or Central Unit; (b) road safety sensitization and awareness raising campaigns targeting the different project areas including urban areas along the roads, with a particular emphasis on the road corridor between Bangui and Garoua-Boulai; and (c) a pilot road safety project to install solar traffic lights in selected intersections in Bangui. 35. Subcomponent 3.2: Development of a road asset management strategy, and road asset management system, with a strong emphasis on climate resilience considerations (IDA financing of US$2.0 million). In support of the MTPER, and FER, the activities will include, among other things: (a) a study to develop a climate informed road asset management strategy; (b) a study to identify the specifications of a road asset management system; (b) procurement of the asset management system; (b) updating data on road conditions; and (c) building the capacity of MTPER and FER staff to ensure the proper use of the road asset management system. The proposed road asset management system will include, inter alia: (i) a climate vulnerability assessment and mapping of road assets using Geographic Information System (GIS); (ii) monitoring of asset conditions to determine the impact of climate change (temperature, precipitation, etc.) on their performance; (iii) include appropriate climate resilient interventions into the programming function of the road asset management system. 36. Subcomponent 3.3: Sustainability of maintenance funding (US$1.3 million). The objective of this subcomponent is to provide a clear roadmap for the revival of road maintenance in CAR to ensure the sustainability and climate resilience of the national road asset. The project will finance a study on how to improve the Road Maintenance Fund’s financial sustainability. It will also support improvements to the governance structure and effectiveness of the Road Maintenance Fund. By project closing, the Road Maintenance Fund is expected to take over the maintenance activities financed by the project using community-based contracts. 37. Subcomponent 3.4: Capacity building for the climate resilience of road infrastructure (IDA financing of US$2.0 million). The objective of this subcomponent is to progressively mainstream climate resilience in the road sector management. MTPER and RF’s capacity will be built for the inclusion of climate resilience in planning and management of road infrastructure through, among other things, the development of climate risk screening tools. In addition, technical assistance will be provided for the development of climate-proofed standards for road design, construction, and maintenance and leveraging the resources of the “Green Road for Water Guidelines�. Component 4: Capacity Building and Project Management (IDA financing of US$5.3 million equivalent) 38. This component will finance capacity building, project management, monitoring and evaluation, and institutional-strengthening activities through the provision of goods, training, and consulting and non-consulting services. The key proposed activities are as follows: • Capacity building for the PIU. This component will finance the institutional strengthening of the PIU, including the hiring of new staff. It will cover technical assistance, training, and operating costs of the PIU. This component will also finance the capacity building and operating costs of MTPER’s decentralized field staff in the North-West and the North-East. • Capacity building for local authorities. The local authorities in the 16 prefectures targeted by the project will benefit from training and capacity building activities in the area of road asset management, climate resilience of road infrastructure, safeguards and Gender-based Violence Apr 25, 2021 Page 13 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) (GBV) dimension of the project to enable them to fully participate in the implementation of the project. • Communication strategy. The PIU will hire a consultant to develop a comprehensive communication strategy and plan for the proposed project. The strategy shall cover all the communication and public relation needs of the different components and aspects of the project, including resettlement, GBV, GRM, Gender dimensions, etc. The implementation of the plan will be coordinated by a local NGO to be recruited by the PIU. • Preparation of future investments. This subcomponent will finance technical assistance to prepare future investments on other selected road sections and to deal with other urgent transport sector needs. The critical road sections for future investments will be defined during project implementation. • Supervision consultants. Supervising consultants will be hired to monitor quality of works and implementation of safeguards for activities under components 1 and 2. • Project management. The project will finance inter alias: (i) salaries of consultants of the PIU and management and operating costs of the coordination unit and the implementing agencies; (ii) environmental, social, security and fiduciary management; (iii) safeguards support including the implementation of Resettlement Action Plans, (iv) monitoring, (v) Financial audits, (vi) operation fees of the local authorities, (vii) acquisition of equipment. Component 5: Contingency Emergency Response 39. In the event of eligible crisis or emergency, the project would provide immediate and effective response to the said eligible or emergency crisis. This component will have an initial zero-dollar allocation. In case this component is activated, it will be completely financed with IDA funds. In the event of an eligible crisis or emergency, this component allows for the possibility to access resources for eligible expenditures enabling the provision of an immediate and effective response. This component is being proposed for incorporation into the project given that the CAR remains vulnerable to shocks. . . Legal Operational Policies Triggered? Projects on International Waterways OP 7.50 No Projects in Disputed Areas OP 7.60 No Summary of Assessment of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts . E. Implementation Institutional and Implementation Arrangements 40. Project Implementation Unit (PIU). The existing PIU of the Rural Connectivity Project housed within the Ministry of Public Works and Road Maintenance (Ministère des Travaux Publics et de l’Entretien Routier, MTPER) Apr 25, 2021 Page 14 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) will be responsible for overall project coordination in the North-East and North-West regions, as well as the remaining activities on the Bangui-Garoua Boulai corridor. The PIU has working relations with the ministries in charge of transport and agriculture, both involved in the project. The PIU has proven experience in coordinating and implementing the fiduciary and safeguards measures required for World Bank-financed projects. The PIU will be responsible for: (a) preparation and consolidation of Annual Work Plans and Budget (AWPs&B); (b) implementation, contract management, coordination, and monitoring of all project-related activities; (c) production of periodic implementation reports; (d) maintenance of records and accounts for all transactions related to the PIU and the project; (e) execution of the annual audit of the entire project and preparation of consolidated annual financial statements and Implementation Financial Reports (IFRs); (f) monitoring of the various activities supported under the project, including management of the environmental and social safeguards aspects and preparation of quarterly Activity Progress Reports; (g) monitoring and consolidation of the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) criteria as agreed with the Borrower; (h) procurement and financial management (FM); and (i) preparation and organization of the Steering Committee (SC) and Technical Committee (TC) meetings and the required documentation for the meetings. 41. With regards to Component 1, given the volatile context, the project will utilize the same diversified approach to implementation adopted by RCP to mitigate implementation risks in remote areas. The project will adopt different implementation arrangements in the North-East and the North-West regions to fit the specific needs and constraints of the two geographies. This means that UNOPS will have a more prominent role in the North-East where the security situation is more challenging. In the event that security conditions worsen, the implementation arrangements would need to be reviewed. . CONTACT POINT World Bank Aguiratou Savadogo-Tinto Senior Transport Specialist Papa Mamadou Fall Senior Transport Specialist Borrower/Client/Recipient Ministry of Economy, Planning and Cooperation Implementing Agencies Apr 25, 2021 Page 15 of 16 The World Bank CAR - Emergency Infrastructure and Connectivity Recovery Project (P176450) Ministry of Public Works and Road Maintenance (MTPER) Michel Ngoya Coordonnateur ngoyawambai@yahoo.fr FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone: (202) 473-1000 Web: http://www.worldbank.org/projects APPROVAL Aguiratou Savadogo-Tinto Task Team Leader(s): Papa Mamadou Fall Approved By Practice Manager/Manager: Country Director: Abdoulaye Seck 07-Jun-2021 Apr 25, 2021 Page 16 of 16