January 18: The government has signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to receive concessional loan of Rs 21 billion and grants of Rs 700 million for the implementation of the 'Urban Resilience and Livelihood Improvement Project'.

Finance Secretary Krishna Hari Puskar and Country Director of ADB for Nepal, Arnaud Cauchois signed the agreement amid a function held at the Finance Ministry on Wednesday.    

The project would be implemented in Pokhara metropolitan city, Janakpurdham sub-metropolitan city, Lumbini municipality, Devdaha municipality, Sainamaina municipality, Siddhartha Nagar municipality, and Tilottama municipality.    

Following the signing ceremony, Finance Secretary Puskar said the local levels where the project will be implemented will have positive impacts on finance and the entire ecosystem.    

It would also contribute to socioeconomic status of women and marginalized communities and help foster internship, skill and local art, he added.    

Similarly, ADB Country Director Cauchois said the project is expected to benefit the infrastructure development and tourism recovery of the concerned municipalities.

“Even the economic activities are expected to thrive, thereby contributing to revenue increase, digital transformation and capacity building,” he said. -- RSS