The Hindu 17.12.2009
Experts begin feasibility study on urban transport
Staff Reporter
| CDIA to help identify potential investors |
KOCHI: The officials of the Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA) have started a pre-feasibility study in the urban transport sector in the city. The officials of the CDIA also attended an interactive session at the Corporation council hall on Wednesday.
The CDIA will not fund or invest in the Kochi project. However, it will help Kochi in preparing a structural investment package and identify potential investors like the Asian Development Bank, said Balakrishnan Elangovan, senior programme specialist of the German Technical Cooperation.
The agency will prioritise the urban transport programme, which is “environment-friendly and meets the needs of all its citizens”, according to the officials. It will carryout a pre-feasibility study and evolve a “phased transport infrastructure investment programme” and a “marketing plan for priority transport investment”.
A consultant firm, GlobalWorks, has been recruited in accordance with the Asian Development Bank procurement guidelines and the study will be completed in five months. CDIA was co-founded initially as a partnership between the ADB and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in 2007, according to its website.
The Swedish International Development Agency and the Spanish government are its funding members.
The nature of investment from the funding agencies like loan and grant components will have to be discussed with the agencies at a later stage.
The CDIA will support in identifying the investment agencies, he said. Peter Turner, team leader, GlobalWorks, John Olof Vinterhav of CDIA, and Kochi Mayor Mercy Williams attended the discussion.
