Completed Development AidData Chinese Aid

China Eximbank RMB 325.9 million government concessional loan for Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project (Linked to Record ID#68572, 95363, 95365)

¥325.99M RMB

Funder	Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank)
Recipient Organization	Fiji Ministry of Economy
Country	Fiji
Start Date	Dec 28, 2010
End Date	Oct 06, 2032
Duration	7,953 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`40003`

Grant Description

China Eximbank RMB 325.9 million government concessional loan for Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project On December 28, 2010, China Eximbank and the Government of Fiji’s Ministry of Economy signed an RMB 325,989,122 government concessional loan (GCL) agreement for the Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project.

📋 Loan / Grant Terms

📅 Maturity20.1666 years

💹 Interest Rate2%

The proceeds of the GCL were to be used by the borrower to finance an RMB 328 million ($54.03 million) commercial contract with China Gezhouba Company Ltd (CGGC), which was signed on July 15, 2010. The loan’s (principal) amount outstanding was RMB 168,252,450.25 (FJD 52,475,579.41) as of June 30, 2023.

The borrower made principal payments worth RMB 21,031,556.28 (FJD 6,833,437.71) and interest payments worth RMB 3,732,517.03 (FJD 1,212,672.18) between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023.

The purpose of the project was to (a) upgrade a 15km segment of Sigatoka Valley Rd that runs from Nacocolevu the base of Narewa Hill (200 meters short of the Dreke Road turn-off and Narata village); and (b) upgrade a 19-kilometer earth-and-broken-stone Sawani-Serea road into a 7.3-meter-wide controlled-access asphalt road that would allow for a driving speed of 60km/h.

CGGC was the contractor responsible for implementation. The Sigatoka Valley road upgrade project started on May 27, 2011 and it was completed on May 9, 2014. The Sawani-Serea road upgrade project began construction on June 1, 2011 and it was completed on May 9, 2014.

The Sigatoka Valley road upgrade project provides access to the “salad bowl” of Fiji, a fertile valley that is dotted with small productive farms and market gardens and supplies much of Viti Levu with fresh produce.

The upgrading of the road sought to enhance connectivity, improve livelihoods, and increase economic activity in Sigatoka and Nausori areas. The upgrading of the Sawani-Serea road has reduced the time to the Suva market from two hours to one hour.

There are some indications that the China Eximbank loan for the Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project may have financially underperformed vis-a-vis the original expectations of the lender.

In 2020, China Eximbank and the Government of Fiji signed a debt suspension agreement as part of the G-20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI).

Under the terms of the agreement, the lender agreed to suspend principal and interest payments due between May 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020 under multiple government concessional loan (GCL) agreements (as captured via Record ID#95365).

Debt service payments under all or many of these loan agreements were again deferred in 2021 (as captured via Record ID#95363).

📋 Staff Comments

This project is also known as the Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project. The Chinese project title is 斐公路升级改造项目中Sawani Serea路段工 and 贷实施斐公路升级改造项目中Sigatoka Valley路段工程中.
In the Overseas Development Finance Dataset that Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center published in December 2020, it identifies this project as being supported by a USD $328 million China Eximbank loan. However, AidData relies on the face value of the loan (RMB 325,989,122) that Fiji’s Ministry of Economy reported to AidData’s Executive Director in April 2018 correspondence. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/uu8muq0ldgd8kjp/FW-%20Request%20for%20List%20of%20Loans%20from%20Chinese%20Government%20Institutions.eml?dl=03. The data on amounts outstanding and repayments were provided by Fiji's Ministry of Finance to AidData's Executive Director in June 2023. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/jqsnza05ar9r8x3/Data%20on%20data%20on%20disbursements%2C%20repayments%20and%20amounts%20outstanding%20under%20China%20Eximbank%20loans.pdf?dl=04. The Sigatoka Valley Road Upgrade Project and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project are part of four road construction projects agreed to by the Chinese Government and the Government of Fiji on December 22, 2010, and funded by China Eximbank (see Project ID#68572).
According to the World Bank's Debtor Reporting System (DRS), the weighted average grace period of all official sector lending from Chinese creditors to government and government-guaranteed borrowing institutions in Fiji was 5.6666-years in 2010. AidData estimates the grace period of the China Eximbank loan that supported the Sigatoka Valley Road and Sawani-Serea Road Upgrade Project by using this figure. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/949n5rctiue6d7c/IDS_Average_grace_period_and_maturity_on_new_external_debt_commitments.xlsx?dl=06. This loan participated in DSSI with China. AidData acquired the number of loans that were rescheduled in 2020 and 2021 from Fiji's ministry of finance website. All loans participated in both DSSI 2020 and 2021.

📚 Sources & References

中国提供优惠贷款的斐济辛加托卡道路升级改造工程竣工通车
中国提供优贷实施斐公路升级改造项目中Sigatoka Valley路段工程举行开工仪式
RRP DEVELOPMENT COORDINATION
FIJI TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT PROJECT
More road upgrading works to be implemented
Summary of EXIMBOC Loans
中国提供优贷实施斐公路升级改造项目中Sawani Serea路段工程举行开工仪式
Capital Projects
Transportation
The priority areas
More road upgrading works to be implemented
Chinese Aid In the Pacific (Map)
Annual Report 2013
Good news for rural areas
Chinese firm starts upgrading roads in Fiji
M Bainimarama -Speech at the Ground-Breaking Ceremony at the Sawani/Serea Road
Sawani section of Fiji highway reconstruction project is in full swing
CGGC enters into the Sawani Serea Highway EPC contract with Fijian government
CGGC enters into the Sawani Serea Highway EPC contract with Fijian government
China's Overseas Development Finance
Data on data disbursements, repayments and amounts outstanding under China Eximbank loans
IDS_Average_grace_period_and_maturity_on_new_external_debt_commitments
REPORT OF THE AUDITOR-GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF FIJI 2018-2019 Financial Statements of Government, 2017-2018 Financial Statements of Government & 2017-2018 Agency Financial Statements of Ministry of Economy
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2016-2017
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2017-2018
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2018-2019
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2019-2020
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2021-2022
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2022-2023
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2023-2024
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2024-2025
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2013
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2014
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2015
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2016
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2020-2021
FIJI BUDGET ESTIMATES 2012
Initial Environmental Examination Sigatoka Valley Road
Appendices - Ministry of Lands and Mineral Resources Responses to the Questions on the 2014 Annual Report Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.