Asian Development Bank (ADB) will continue to assist Bangladesh to reform the external trade regime, to participate actively in sub-regional cooperation
initiatives and to establish an integrated sub-regional transport and energy network to enhance Bangladesh’s position as a transport and transhipment hub. ADB
disclosed this it in its publication “40 years of Bangladesh–ADB partnership” released recently.
ADB is the only development finance institution with regional cooperation and integration (RCI) written in its charter.
RCI is one of the three strategic agendas under ADB’s long-term strategic framework, Strategy 2020, which also emphasizes inclusive growth and environmentally
sustainable development.
ADB said it promotes regional cooperation and integration as a strategic priority to link national with regional interests to help countries benefit from each other’s
strengths and overcome mutual problems.
The Manila based ADB pursues these objectives in South Asia through the SASEC programme involving Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal.
Through the RCI programmes, ADB supports Bangladesh to improve connectivity, increase regional trade and investment, develop regional tourism, raise cooperation in
energy, and strengthen the private sector.
ADB recognises economic cooperation as an important means of achieving more efficient use of regional resources; making economies more complementary; andpromoting the
orderly expansion of foreign trade, in particular, subregional and interregional trade.
Improving connectivity, facilitating trade and investment, developing regional tourism, facilitating cooperation in energy to meet growing regional energy needs, and
promoting private sector cooperation are the key strategic objectives of ADB for South Asia, it added.
Appropriate infrastructure is the key to establishing business-to-business and people-to-people contacts, ADB said adding “In short, it is critical to look at regional
integration with a holistic approach focusing on infrastructure, transport, trade, trade logistics, and transaction costs, among other issues.”
RCI also enhances private sector participation by facilitating and expanding trade and investment. By helping to build trust, understanding, and shared expectations of
the benefits of cooperation, it can contribute significantly to both maintaining and restoring regional stability and peace.
Building on three ADB-supported sector studies (SAARC Regional Multimodal Transport Study, BIMSTEC Transport Infrastructure and Logistics Study, and SAARC Regional
Energy Trade Study), ADB will work under SASEC to develop investment projects for transport logistics and trade facilitation among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and
Nepal. These include developing the Petrapole–Benapole border crossing, the Kakarbhitta–
Panitanki–Jaigaon–Banglabandha and Phuentsholing– Jaigaon–Changrabandha–Burimariroad corridors, and a cross-border management regime focusing regional connectivity of
rail and road among Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, and the People’s Republic of China.
ADB is supporting Bangladesh and India to connect their power grids for commercial trade of power. ADB is also supporting projects to improve infrastructure for
regional tourism by connecting the Buddhist circuits in Bangladesh, India, and Nepal.
In addition, a regional information highway project is helping the South Asian countries to improve cross-border ICT infrastructure and connectivity.
ADB is also improving trade facilitation regimes, including land port development in Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal through a combination of budget support programmes
and technical assistance to complement work on SASEC transport connectivity.
Future RCI interventions aim at broader issues including trans-boundary river management, disaster management, climate change, and environment.
-With The Independent input
