A direct road from the Kazakh city of Almaty to Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan will increase the attractiveness of the entire region for tourists, which is why the Asian Development Bank is interested in resolving this issue, said Kylychbek Dzhakypov, a representative of the Asian Development Bank and national coordinator of the Almaty-Bishkek Economic Corridor (EBEC) in Kyrgyzstan, Akchabar reports.
The issue of building a road to Issyk-Kul from Almaty has been raised more than once, but it has been postponed over the years, either due to political sentiments or due to more important and costly infrastructure projects.
However, according to Kylychbek Dzhakypov, the ground is now ripe to finally begin to act, especially since the Asian Development Bank is also interested in starting such a large-scale project.
“A legal assessment was carried out to determine what legislation needs to be taken into account for the successful completion of the project. A technical assessment was also carried out: engineers studied the site, assessed the infrastructure requirements, such as the number of lanes, turns, the ability to pass trucks and other details. The assessment has already yielded good results, although there are still issues to be resolved in financial terms,” said Dzhakypov.
The project is already of interest to businesses. Not only investors from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan want to invest in such a large-scale project, but it is also of interest to investors from Russia and Turkey.
“This is a good project, and its prospects are visible. It is long-term and includes not only construction, but also maintenance and operation for 20-25 years. In addition, roadside infrastructure can also be developed. Therefore, the project has great prospects and is of interest,” the expert concluded.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
August 8, 2024