In Yunnan Province in China, Cartier Consult has been involved in the preparation of the ADB-funded Yunnan Integrated Road Network Development Project. This project includes a local road maintenance component. In preparation for the implementation of this component, a pilot project was carried out aimed at developing a suitable system for the maintenance of local roads by maintenance groups.
This pilot project focused on ethnic minority women who were assisted to form maintenance groups that were contracted by county communication bureaus for year-round maintenance of 165km of project roads. The project was successful in demonstrating the ability of community members to carry out maintenance works, the resulting improved road conditions and continued access compared to the traditional system of voluntary labour contributions, and the efficiency of the inspection and remuneration system developed under the project. A guide for communication bureaus and a manual for maintenance groups were also developed under this project.
Although, seeing the benefits of the project, the provincial government has decided to increase the maintenance allocation to routine maintenance of local roads, the available funding is still very low. A second pilot project is therefore about to start that will focus on determining the minimal investment required per kilometer per year in order to ensure continued access and avoid the loss of local road assets. This project will also look at introducing performance-based contracting as a means of further reducing the management burden on local government. The system as developed in the first pilot project and which will be further improved under the second pilot project, will subsequently be applied in the $1.5 million rural road component of the main ADB project.
