Economic Reporter :
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved $1.2 billion in finance for the second phase upgrade of the Dhaka-Northwest international trade corridor in Bangladesh.
“Bangladesh has good prospects of becoming a regional trade hub, if the country’s transport infrastructure can be improved to bring down transport costs and make the sector more competitive,” said Dong Kyu Lee, Unit Head of Project Administration in ADB’s South Asia Department.
“To further these aims, the project is expected to significantly boost trade and prosperity along the trade corridor route, the second busiest artery in the country,” said Lee.
Transport infrastructure is the centerpiece of the ADB-supported South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program, which promotes regional prosperity, said an ADB press release.
Since 2001, SASEC members have invested more than $9.17 billion in projects with a regional dimension, including 31 transport projects worth $7.3 billion. SASEC transport investments in Bangladesh focus on developing highway corridors. Road travel accounts for 70 percent of all passenger traffic and 60 percent of freight in Bangladesh, where traffic has been growing at a rate of 8 percent a year, the release added.
ADB has been a partner of the government in improving the Dhaka-Northwest corridor since 1994, when the landmark Jamuna Bridge Project was approved. A first ADB loan of $198 million was approved in 2012 for what is now considered phase 1 of the international corridor project. This increased road capacity on 70 kilometers (km) of the Joydeypur-Elenga section of the road.
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved $1.2 billion in finance for the second phase upgrade of the Dhaka-Northwest international trade corridor in Bangladesh.
“Bangladesh has good prospects of becoming a regional trade hub, if the country’s transport infrastructure can be improved to bring down transport costs and make the sector more competitive,” said Dong Kyu Lee, Unit Head of Project Administration in ADB’s South Asia Department.
“To further these aims, the project is expected to significantly boost trade and prosperity along the trade corridor route, the second busiest artery in the country,” said Lee.
Transport infrastructure is the centerpiece of the ADB-supported South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program, which promotes regional prosperity, said an ADB press release.
Since 2001, SASEC members have invested more than $9.17 billion in projects with a regional dimension, including 31 transport projects worth $7.3 billion. SASEC transport investments in Bangladesh focus on developing highway corridors. Road travel accounts for 70 percent of all passenger traffic and 60 percent of freight in Bangladesh, where traffic has been growing at a rate of 8 percent a year, the release added.
ADB has been a partner of the government in improving the Dhaka-Northwest corridor since 1994, when the landmark Jamuna Bridge Project was approved. A first ADB loan of $198 million was approved in 2012 for what is now considered phase 1 of the international corridor project. This increased road capacity on 70 kilometers (km) of the Joydeypur-Elenga section of the road.
