In the presence of Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina, the Saudi Fund for Development (SDF), represented by Director-General of the Africa Operations Department, Mohammed bin Adhan Al-Shammari, participated today in the ceremony to lay the corner stone of a project to build a bridge over the Mangoky River.
The SDF is contributing to building the bridge with a USD20 million developmental soft loan, alongside contributions from institutions and development funds in the Arab Coordination Group and the government of Madagascar.
The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister of Madagascar Christian Ntsay and other senior officials.
The project contributes to supporting agriculture and tourism sectors in Madagascar and will help farmers transport their products to markets in a quicker manner and reduce traffic congestion.
Delivering a speech at the ceremony, President Rajoelina thanked the SDF and other development lenders for their contributions to constructing the 878-meter bridge and other development projects in his country.
Minister of Public Works Jacques Ulrich Andriantiana said the Mangoky River Bridge is the longest in Madagascar, and was built with contributions from the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) to support the commercial infrastructure across the country. He said the project will enhance the tourism and agricultural potential of the region, and the government of Madagascar is exerting all efforts to combat isolation in some areas, reiterating his government’s support of infrastructure to enhance the development of southern Madagascar.
For his part, the SFD Director-General of Africa Operations indicated that the construction of the Mangoky Bridge is consistent with the SFD’s keenness to support sustainable infrastructure in developing countries globally, stressing that the project will contribute to improving transport links between two main regions, to promote social and economic growth in Madagascar, and stimulating key sectors such as tourism. He added that the project represents a common value in cooperation with international partners towards sustainable development, in addition to being a result of the close development relations and the successful long-term development partnership between SFD and Madagascar for more than 47 years.
Since 1978, SFD has provided six loans to finance six development projects and programs in the sectors of energy, industry and mining, and transport and communications in Madagascar, worth around $69 million. This support aims to consolidate development frameworks to reach sustainable prosperity in the Republic.
Source: Saudi Press Agency