The government on Thursday signed a US$ 23 million technical assistance loan agreement with ADB to help roll out planned cross border transport connectivity projects and accelerate growth and economic activity across South Asia and beyond.
The External Resource Department secretary, M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, and the ADB country director, Thevakumar Kandiah, signed the loan agreement in presence of the communications minister, Syed Abul Hossain, at the NEC-II in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in Dhaka.
The facility will cost $27.59 million, out of which the ADB loan is US$ 23 million and the rest US$ 4.59 million will be provided by the government.
The loan to be disbursed from ADB's concessional wing, Asian Development Fund, will have 32-year term, including a grace period of 8 years, at an interest rate of 1.0 per cent per annum during the grace period and 1.5 per cent per annum thereafter. The deal will also be subject to other terms and conditions set forth in the draft loan agreement.
The technical assistance loan for the Sub-regional Transport Project Preparatory Facility will be used to hasten the passage of road and rail projects earmarked as priorities for the development of the sub-region.
After signing the agreement, Syed Abul Hossain said feasibility study would be conducted under the project to create sub-regional connectivity with India, Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal and China.
He said US$ 3.8 billion would be required for undertaking 8 railway projects while US$ 2.65 billion for 14 road sector projects to boost the regional connectivity.
Asked about the current status of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge project, the minister said the progress the government has made so far about the Padma Bridge has been possible due to support from the donors.
He informed that they would get concurrence from the donors at any time for the construction of the main part of the Bridge.
Thevakumar Kandiah said, 'Projects prepared under the facility will strengthen cross-border links to stimulate intraregional trade and investment besides supporting economic growth and reducing poverty in Bangladesh,'
The transport projects in Bangladesh in the past had faced start up delays because of a long lag time between loan approval and the final project design.
The facility will address this and other obstacles to speed up the implementation by supporting feasibility studies, design preparation, procurement, social and environmental safeguards and capacity building for oversight agencies.
Road projects targeted for assistance will include cross-border routes identified by the ADB-assisted Regional Multimodal Transport Study. The facility will help prepare projects covering around 300 kms of road works in 2012 and up to 1,700 kms by the end of 2013.
The rail component will focus on priority projects along the sub-regional transport routes, including the detailed design for construction of railway track from Duhazari to Cox's Bazar via Ramu and Ramu to Gundum near Myanmar border (128 kms).
Preparation of Dhaka-Mawa-Bhanga-Jessore rail link through the Padma Bridge has also been included.
Source : New Age
