IDB Approves $101.68 Million in Financing to Improve Road Connectivity and Strengthen Honduras’ Value Chains

WASHINGTON — The Board of Executive Directors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved $101.68 million to improve road infrastructure in northwestern Honduras, facilitate connections between agricultural areas and the main logistics corridors and markets, and help reduce transportation costs for producers in the region.

The operation is aligned with the IDB Group’s regional "América en el Centro" program, which seeks to promote the development and integration of Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic.

The operation will finance the rehabilitation, improvement, and maintenance of 48 kilometers of the Pito Solo–Santa Bárbara section of National Route 20 (RN-20), as well as the rehabilitation and improvement of rural roads serving productive areas. These interventions aim to strengthen connections between agricultural production areas, national and regional logistics corridors, and Puerto Cortés, a key maritime gateway to markets.

Approximately 63,300 people are expected to directly benefit from the interventions on RN-20 and rural roads, including producers, transport operators, and businesses linked to value chains. An additional 32,630 residents living within a two-kilometer radius of the works are expected to benefit indirectly.

In addition to the road works, the program will strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of Honduras’ Secretariat of Infrastructure and Transportation (SIT), with the goal of improving the planning, prioritization, implementation, and maintenance of road infrastructure. This component will help strengthen management of the road network and promote the long-term sustainability of investments.

The $101.68 million specific investment loan (ESP) consists of $61.008 million from the Bank’s Ordinary Capital resources, with a 20.5-year repayment period, a nine-year grace period, and an interest rate based on SOFR. The remaining $40.762 million, from the Bank’s Concessional Ordinary Capital resources, has a 40-year repayment and grace period and an interest rate of 0.25%.