Building and upgrading the incomplete 10,000 kilometers of the Asian Highway will require private sector involvement, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has concluded.
The highway, which will link most of Asia with Europe, incorporates 55 routes within the boundaries of the 32 member countries of the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network.
The Asian Highway Investment Forum met recently in Bangkok with the participation of 28 Asian countries, private sector representatives, and international financiers including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Japan International Co-operation Agency, Japan Bank for International Co-operation, and the Korean International Cooperation Agency.
They explored investment opportunities and different approaches to finance the project, mainly in upgrading the remaining 10,000km of the route to international standards.
