Bank says Cadip ‘most successful’ programme

THE Asian Development Bank has rated the Civil Aviation Development Investment Programme (Cadip) as one of its most successful projects in Papua New Guinea.
The bank’s unit head of portfolio management Maria Theresa Villareal said the aim was to provide safer, more efficient and all-weather air transport services around the country.
She was in Goroka yesterday to witness the opening of the airport upgrade project which the bank funded.
She said Cadip was a US$480mil (K1.56bil) financing facility.
“The Cadip programme and ADB-PNG Government partnership is working very well. We have achieved a key milestone with the opening of Goroka Airport. And we will continue to achieve more.”
Villareal said Cadip had improved safety, security and comfort of passengers who commute to and from various airports in the country.
Meanwhile, Chinese Ambassador Xue Bing said the contractor, Covec, which carried out the airport work, was part of the Chinese State-owned enterprise China Railway International Group Corporation which specialised in construction around the world.
“This company has a long history of going out of China to participate in the construction of many big and important projects in many parts of the world and has earned a good reputation,” Bing said.
“Covec entered PNG market 22 years ago and has completed over 100 construction projects with a total amount of investments of US$120mil (K391mil). It has won the support and trust of the Government and people of PNG, with its excellent record of professional expertise and social responsibility.”