Japanese ODA Loan for Tunisia- Alleviating Traffic Congestion and Air Pollution in the Capital Region -

signing ceremony

1. Today, JICA (President: Sadako Ogata) signed an agreement with the government of the Tunisian Republic to provide a Japanese ODA loan for the Metropolitan Railway Electrification Project (II) for up to 4,596 million yen.

2. Under this project, the 23-kilometer commuter line between the capital Tunis and the southern suburb Borj Cedria will be electrified to boost the rail transportation capacity. This will address the growing demand for transportation in the greater Tunis region, alleviate traffic congestion as commuters switch from private vehicles to trains, and reduce air pollution. This loan is a continuation of the Japanese ODA loan provided in February 2001 for phase (I) of this project.[1]Financing from the loan will be allocated to rail car procurement, electrification of the southern commuter line in the greater Tunis region between Tunis and Borj Cedria, and expenses for related construction.

3. The Greater Tunis region encompasses a population of some 2.39 million people (as of 2008) and is the center of Tunisia’s economy, society and administration. Because of geographical constraints limiting the available land in Tunis, the suburban areas located to the north and south of the city are undergoing rapid expansion in residential districts, leading to severe road congestion during peak commuting hours. Traffic volume is expected to rise an average of 2.6 percent per year through 2021, further increasing the traffic congestion and air pollution. Reducing both through a shift from automobile transportation demand to rail is thus a pressing issue in Tunisia. Although long-distance and suburban lines are in operation between Tunis and other major cities, electrification has fallen behind, and the rail cars currently operated by diesel engines are aging, having been placed into service between the 1960s and 1980s. There is therefore a strong need to procure new cars and increase the transportation capacity with a modernized railroad network.

4. JICA’s policy is to continue its proactive support for addressing global-scale problems of air pollution through projects such as this.

• [1]Appendix: JBIC SIGNS ODA LOAN AGREEMENT WITH TUNISIA (PR2000-48 February 7, 2001)
• [2]Project Map (PDF/1,366KB)