The World Bank-financed Shaanxi Ankang Road Development Project (SARDP) with the objective to upgrade the transportation network and road facilities in the south of Shaanxi Province. The project set out to enhance road infrastructure capacity and network integration along the corridor of Ankang-Maoba and to improve the interconnection and quality of the province’s transportation infrastructure by linking rural roads with main highways, specifically in the Ankang region. Connecting rural areas with the economic success of urban centers will be achieved by developing transportation channels to and from mainline trunk roads such as the Ankang-Maoba Expressway. The SARDP includes the construction of 87 km Ankang-Maoba Expressway and upgrading or construction of 28 rural roads with a total of 1480 km.

HJI Group collaborated with a team of specialists from the Shaanxi Academy of Social Sciences and provided socioeconomic consultancy services. The team studied the socioeconomic impact of the road improvement project and transportation conditions in the province. The consultants defined the methodology and the data collection sample for this study in addition to conducting the baseline and follow-up surveys during the course of the project. The information obtained from these collaborative socioeconomic studies was crucial to understanding and assessing the benefits and results of the road improvement project for one of the poorest regions in China.

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