Manila, ADB, October 04, 2022

Aim Texas Consultants, in a joint venture with WAPCOS Limited from India, participated in a consultancy tender (TA-6955 KGZ) for the preparation of the Issyk-Kul Ring Road Improvement Project – 01-F Project Preparation Consultants (56146-002). In this joint venture, WAPCOS serves as the Lead Consultant, while Aim Texas is a JV Member. The project is funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The scope of consultancy services for this project will encompass detailed design, tendering, construction supervision, environmental safeguards, and other services as outlined in the Terms of Reference (TOR). It is essential that the consultant possesses a thorough understanding and familiarity with the procurement guidelines of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), as well as the policies and procedures of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

Located in Eastern Kyrgyzstan within the Northern Tian Shan mountains, Issyk-Kul is a lake that belongs to the category of endorheic lakes, meaning it lacks an outflow. The Ring Road surrounding Issyk-Kul has experienced significant deterioration, characterized by substandard riding conditions and insufficient capacity to accommodate the heavy influx of vehicles during tourist and harvest seasons. As a result, safety concerns arise. Furthermore, there is a notable absence of essential roadside amenities like visitor centers, public toilets, and streetlights, leading to decreased satisfaction among tourists.

The Issyk-Kul Ring Road Improvement Project is being supported by a technical assistance grant from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The project aims to reconstruct the remaining section of the road and enhance the implementation of the action plan, which was collaboratively developed by the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) and the Ministry of Culture, Information, Sports, and Youth Policy. The objective is to enhance the tourism infrastructure in the Issyk-Kul Lake area. The MOTC will act as the executing agency for the project, with the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) of MOTC serving as the implementing agency.

The main objectives of the consultancy as below:

• Carry out technical, economic, and financial due diligence and
• Formulate non-investment project components.

The main tasks of the work are as follows:

• Carrying out due diligence of all aspects of the detailed design, confirming its compliance with relevant international and national standards, particularly for pavements, bridges, climate resilience, and road safety aspects.

• Identifying potential access road connections between the project road and the adjacent areas.

• Preparing a report setting out aspects of the detailed design that require amendment to bring it into reasonable compliance with international standards and climate resilience, tourism support, and road safety features, agreeing these amendments with MOTC/PIU.

• Carrying out maintenance works based on the earlier established performance indicators, studying various types of performance-based contract forms to define most suitable contract form.

• Identifying the works to be carried out under the performance-based maintenance component and the defect liability period.

• Defining scope and key activities to be implemented under the non-investment components and preparing associated terms of reference (TOR).

• Review the tourism development plan of the Kyrgyz Republic and the joint action plan developed.

• Financial management assessment.

• Preparing a social and gender impact assessment.

• Preparing Paris Agreement Alignment (PAA) assessment per ADB’s Guidance Note.

• Preparing a cost estimate for the project.

• Conducting economic and financial sustainability analyses.

• Assisting MOTC in procurement strategy planning, assessing MOTC procurement capacity, preparing a project procurement plan, and drafting/finalizing a master bidding document.

Preparing a final report for the TRTA.