ISLAMABAD: National Highway Authority (NHA) plans to start work on improvement and widening of 38.85 kilometers Chakdara – Timargara Section of Nowshera- Chitral Highway ( N-45).

The project aims to improve the connectivity by widening and rehabilitating the existing road and enhance the effective use of the national highway, an official of NHA told APP on Monday.

The project will also help promote trade with neighbouring Central Asian countries by improving major arterial roads and bridges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

It is worth a mention that recently Pakistan signed a loan agreement of $ 49.045 million for Section-I of Chakdara-Timargarah section of N-45 with the EXIM Bank of Korea under the Economic Cooperation Development Fund (EDCF).

The total cost of the project is $ 60.740 million out of which Korean EXIM Bank has committed to provide $ 49.045 million as a soft loan while the Government of Pakistan will provide $ 11.695 million.