ADB commits Rs 3 billion for coastal areas uplift

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has committed 50 million US dollars (Rs 3 billion) for Sindh Coastal and Inland Community Development Project (SCICDP) to be implemented during the year 2006. The amount will be spent under an integrated Coastal Zone Management Master Plan in the coastal areas of Sindh.
According to the director general Coastal Development Authority, Munawar Opel, the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) in Islamabad has already approved the project's concept paper. Asian Bank will contribute Rs 39 million towards Rs 48.840 million cost of the concept paper and rest by the Sindh government. The study will be carried out over the next eight months from July 2005 by 41 foreign and local consultants to be appointed by the ADB. The investment in projects under SCICDP will be identified on the basis of the study.
The study will cover policy and institution; natural resource economist; coastal resource management; coast fisheries infrastructure; rural sociologist/community development; gender and development; coastal environment; rural infrastructure enterprise development; farming system/crop development; fisheries/Aquaculture; coastal institutions and policy, geographic improvement; alternative energy; hydro-geologist; oilseed crops; marine fisheries; and mangroves development.
Munawar Opel pointed out that recently the World Bank had offered 13.50 million dollars for the project "Supporting Vulnerable Communities in Thatta and Badin Districts of Sindh" with SCDA as a responsible agency.
The project was based on the World Bank's socio-economic study report on the coastal areas of two districts prepared with the SCDA assistance and has a life span of three years.
The report examines the socio-economic conditions of the communities residing in the coastal areas of Thatta and Badin districts and identifies constraints that need to be addressed in the short run.
It focuses on the 175,000 to 200,000 households that live along the coast in the eight talukas of two districts and to address some of the constraints faced by them, resulting in improvement of livelihood of the local coastal communities.
The World Bank funding will have three components of Community Investment Fund (CIF) 10 million dollars; mangroves rehabilitation and ecosystem management 2 million dollars and project management, monitoring and evaluation 1.5 million dollars.
The areas to be covered will include mobilization of community organisation, advisory services in saline agriculture, social services, construction of primary schools, health centres, provision of equipment and furniture, reconstruction of cyclone destroyed residential houses, water supply and sanitation, community-based fishery management, support for coastal aquaculture, construction of jetties/wharves, provision of fishing boats, improvement in landing fish, support for improvement in marketing and processing, rural roads and electrification, including through windmill and solar hybrid generation system.