[🇧🇩] Sea Ports/Air Ports/River Ports/Bridges/Mega Projects

[Bilal9]

 

[Saif]

More power to Dr. Yunus and Japan

 

[Saif]

Prof Yunus seeks public support for port reforms

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Friday called upon the people of the country to continue their strong support for the interim government’s port management reform initiative, stressing that they envision Bangladesh as a key economic hub in South Asia. “We envision Bangladesh a

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Prof Yunus seeks public support for port reforms

UNB
Published :
Jun 06, 2025 22:43
Updated :
Jun 06, 2025 22:43

Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Friday called upon the people of the country to continue their strong support for the interim government’s port management reform initiative, stressing that they envision Bangladesh as a key economic hub in South Asia.

“We envision Bangladesh as a key economic hub in South Asia. To achieve this, we are not only boosting investment services but also expanding the capacity of our ports,” he said uurging all citizens not to fall victim to baseless opposition and misinformation.

In a televised speech to the nation, Prof Yunus said, “Stay united in your support for the government’s efforts to reform port management and resist those who seek to undermine it.”

Reflecting on the country’s progress since independence in 1971, Professor Yunus noted that Bangladesh has not yet reached the level of economic advancement it deserves.

Failure to modernise the ports, he warned, would perpetuate the country’s unemployment crisis and stall economic development.

Addressing public speculation regarding the Chittagong Port, Professor Yunus said, “There have been rumors that the port is being handed over to foreign entities. Let me be clear—Chittagong Port is the heart of Bangladesh’s economy. Currently, this heart is weak. We must strengthen and modernise it if we are to move the economy forward.”

He emphasised that transforming the port requires a series of strategic actions and collaboration with global experts.

The interim government, he said, is working with leading international port operators from Europe, North America, Asia, and the Middle East to bring world-class expertise to Bangladesh.

“These firms manage ports across the globe—in countries like Canada, Australia, China, South Korea, India, Pakistan, Turkey, and beyond. Our goal is to learn from them and develop our own capabilities. I am confident that if we begin now, by 2031 we will be well-equipped, and by 2036, Bangladeshis will be managing ports around the world,” he said.

Professor Yunus said many employment opportunities will open up for Bangladeshis both at home and abroad as a result of this knowledge transfer.

“Soon, wherever you go—to ports across the world—you will find people from Chittagong, Noakhali, Sylhet and Barishal working there. Our people will be globally recognised for their expertise,” he said.

Prof Yunus also highlighted the broader regional impact of modernised Bangladeshi ports. “Once upgraded, our ports won’t just serve Bangladesh—they will become vital to the economies of our neighbors, including Nepal and Bhutan,” he noted.

The Chief Adviser envisioned the entire coastal region—from Kumira to Teknaf—emerging as a major economic zone, with new industrial hubs and modern infrastructure driven by port efficiency and sea access.

“This transformation will also give rise to a new industry: modern fish farming, harvesting, and processing. This will create a whole new economic frontier,” he said.

Professor Yunus assured the public that national sovereignty and security will remain intact, stating, “Nowhere in the world has the involvement of international port operators compromised a country’s sovereignty or security.”​

 

[Saif]

Chattogram Port surpasses FY24 container handling rates despite multiple setbacks

With 15 days remaining in the 2024-25 fiscal year, container handling at Chattogram Port has surpassed the total volume handled in the previous year, overcoming the dollar crisis, LC complications, and floods. In FY25, a total of over 3.17 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of import and e

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Chattogram Port surpasses FY24 container handling rates despite multiple setbacks

bdnews24.com
Published :
Jun 16, 2025 22:33
Updated :
Jun 16, 2025 22:33

With 15 days remaining in the 2024-25 fiscal year, container handling at Chattogram Port has surpassed the total volume handled in the previous year, overcoming the dollar crisis, LC complications, and floods.

In FY25, a total of over 3.17 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of import and export containers have been handled at Bangladesh’s main seaport.

In comparison, the total container handling in FY24 stood at over 3.16 million TEUs. Precisely speaking, that is 3,089 more containers handled this fiscal year, with two weeks to spare.

In FY23, the port handled 3 million TEUs.

A port official told bdnews24.com that despite disruptions caused by the July Uprising, prolonged floods, extended Eid holidays, a customs officers’ work strike, and a transport strike, this year’s container volume has already surpassed the previous fiscal year.

If the current trend continues, the handling volume may reach 3.3 million TEUs by the end of the fiscal year, according to port authorities.

This drastic improvement has been credited to infrastructural changed in the port, including automated services, the introduction of e-gate passes, and modernisation of the container operating system.

Enhanced cooperation from port users and faster cargo clearance have also contributed to the port’s increased productivity.

Captain Ahmed Amin Abdullah, Member (Harbour & Marine) of Chattogram Port, said that “Despite various challenges, we handled more containers by the 15th of June this fiscal year than in the previous one. With 15 more days to go, we hope to set a new record.”

He added, “The current level of progress at the port is the result of combined efforts from the staff and port users. We hope the handling rate will keep going upward for the remainder of the fiscal year.”​

 

[Saif]

Project worth Tk 46.62b up for ECNEC approval

Another hefty sum of Tk 31.74 billion is to be invested over the next two years in maintenance dredging along the 75-kilometre channel of the Payra Port, which continuously faces navigability challenges for its distance from the sea estuary. Additionally, two hopper dredgers will be procured at

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

RECURRENT PAYRA PORT DREDGING COSTS HUGE SUMS
Project worth Tk 46.62b up for ECNEC approval
Steps a must-have to minimise financial losses by maximising port's utilisation: Economist

JAHIDUL ISLAM
Published :
Jun 21, 2025 00:48
Updated :
Jun 21, 2025 00:48

Another hefty sum of Tk 31.74 billion is to be invested over the next two years in maintenance dredging along the 75-kilometre channel of the Payra Port, which continuously faces navigability challenges for its distance from the sea estuary.

Additionally, two hopper dredgers will be procured at a cost of Tk 14.0 billion for regular maintenance dredging to maintain navigability in the long term to keep the seaport operational, officials say.

In this regard, the Ministry of Shipping has proposed a project titled 'Maintenance Dredging of Rabnabad Channel of Payra Port and Procurement of Hopper Dredger'.

The estimated aggregate cost of the project is Tk 46.62 billion, which will cover dredging operations, dredger procurement and associated activities, said Planning Commission sources.

"The Physical Infrastructure Division of the Planning Commission reviewed the proposal at a project-evaluation committee (PEC) meeting Wednesday and decided to forward it to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for final approval, subject to the incorporation of certain recommendations," a senior planning official said.

Two more development projects -- one of Tk 1.61 billion for the digitisation of the Payra Port and another of Tk 4.90 billion to provide housing facilities for the port's officers and staff -- are also scheduled to be reviewed at two separate PEC meetings within this month, he added.

A total of Tk 53.12 billion needs to be spent on the Payra Port over the next three years beyond the scope of the existing projects.

The entire cost is to be borne by the government from its own funds if the three projects receive the seal of final approval.

Officials have said the Payra Port Authority previously spent Tk 72.89 billion between November 2020 and December last year under a development project and a revenue programme for capital dredging and channel maintenance to support operations at the yet-under-construction port on the southern shore of the Bay of Bengal.

Stakeholders and experts are questioning the justification for the new dredging project, as the port channel remains non-navigable despite the substantial expenditure on previous dredging efforts.

The PEC meeting also recommended including a detailed breakdown of the port's revenue and expenditure, along with projected earnings from the proposed dredging, before the project is submitted for the final all-clear, officials said.

Earlier in March this year, Planning Adviser of the interim government Prof Wahiduddin Mahmud at a press briefing had termed the Payra Port a "poison for the economy," citing its high maintenance costs and limited utility.

He said the port would need two dredgers every year to remain operational, mainly to support coal imports for a nearby power plant.

"Payra is far from being a seaport. At best, it is a wharf for small vessels," he said, adding that a large sum has already been spent and the project's viability is now in question.

He criticised the port as a wrong public investment at several meetings, including the post-budget briefing arranged by the finance ministry.

However, he suggested following a site visit that the port could be developed as an alternative to Chattogram and Mongla ports in case either is disrupted by natural disasters or geopolitical tensions, a Planning Commission official said.

The new dredging project, proposed by the Ministry of Shipping and to be implemented by the Payra Port Authority, aims to maintain a 10.5-metre draft over a 75-kilometre stretch of the Rabnabad channel and procure two trailing suction hopper dredgers.

Officials say the goal is to enable safe navigation of Panamax-class commercial vessels with a capacity of 40,000 deadweight tonnes (DWT).

The latest project also raises broader questions about public investment priorities at a time when Bangladesh faces growing fiscal pressure, sluggish revenue mobilisation, and dwindling development aid.

In the past, many development projects saw unusually high spending and numerous unnecessary initiatives were taken, says Professor Mustafizur Rahman, a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

He notes that the economy is now facing the consequences of those mistakes.

Besides, he says, significant investments have been made, and the port is already in limited use. If it is not kept operational, all that money will be wasted.

He emphasises that the remaining port infrastructure must be built in a "highly cost-effective way, and steps should be taken to minimise financial losses by maximising the port's utilisation".

Spending nearly Tk 50 billion on dredging when health, education, and climate-adaptation sectors remain underfunded reflects misplaced priorities, said a budget analyst at a local think- tank.

"We are treating symptoms, not causes. Why is there no long-term siltation-management strategy or sustainable port-development plan yet?"

Even government documents showed that if maintenance dredging did not continue beyond April 2024, the channel would begin to silt up again, rendering previous capital investments futile.

The port's dredging history is long--and costly. Since its inception in 2013 as a flagship project to spur economic development in the backwater southern region, it has relied heavily on expensive capital and maintenance dredging.

The initial dredging contract - awarded controversially in a public-private partnership (PPP) model to Belgian firm Jan De Nul - was later converted into a government-funded project amid disputes and financing complications.

The capital-dredging component alone reportedly cost over Tk 68.75 billion.

The port authority implemented another project titled 'Emergency Maintenance Dredging of the Rabnabad Channel (Inner and Outer Channels)' between November 2020 and June 2022 at a cost of Tk 4.13 billion.

Despite a Tk 72.88-billion investment, the port still lacks in-house dredging capacity and dredgers must be purchased now to keep the channel navigable--a gap that critics argue should have been addressed in the original project.​