Anexos

Conclusions

The principal conclusions are as follows ;

* Serious problems of retarded agricultural and

industrial development , family planning and the effective d e V e1o pment o f resou rces still a11e nd th e Ba nglad esh eco- nomy , Simultaneous growth in agriculture and manufac­ turing is needed_together with heavy investments in trans­ port and energy infrastructure „ Economic growth must be high and sustaineed .

* Witl'i few e x cpti ons the educati ona 1 elite has shown

little managerial talent and practical sense , and a lot of modern machinery and equipment remain unused and get destroyed due to organisational weaknesses , as well as a weak sense of importauice of maintencince .

* Bangladesh's balaxnce of payments remain precarious .

In monetary terms exports have risen more slowly than imports , of which foreign aid pay for about half , Most of the Annual Development Programme ie government finauiced investment and other development expenditure is still financed by foreign aid „ *

* Maritime containerisation has grown rapidly in Bang­ ladesh reaching a total of approximately BOOOO TEUs in FYS5-6 after a relatively slow start in '80 „

# Majority oi import containers move throuqh Chitta­ gong port , but Mongla port handles a substantial volume of export containers - mostly jute „ Chittagong alone cut. rently handles 8A% of Bang 1 £idesh' s containerised tonnage , B0133 TELis in FY36-7 „

* There is a lack of infrastructure for distribution

of se?aborne containers in Bangladesh which is causing damage and delay to cargo and adds to port congestion and extra costs to importe^rs and exporters . This is denying them the full benefits of containerisation . If this state is not remedied , the effectiveness of the new MPB beinq c o n s t r u c t e d in C h i 11 a gong w i 11 i:> e r e d Li c e d . C o m p 1 e t i o n of the MPB project must be expedited „

The containerised traffic is forecast to grow rapid­ ly at ChitLugony and Mongla ports , as further cargo is

containerised . '154000 TEUs pa avid k'55!000 TEUs psa and

360000 TEUs pa are forecast to be handled at Chittagong port by the years FY92--3 , FY97-8 and FY02-3 respectively. Of these some 55% of the container traffic originates from or is destined for the Dhaka region ,

•K- It is indispensable for Bangladesh to extend , mod­

ernise , and optimise her port and other infrastructura1 facilities and operational capabilities for container traffic .

Only very limited prospects exist for containerisa­ tion outside the Chittagong-Dhaka corridor ,

In short to medium term there are no prospects of Indian or Nepalese transit traffic through Bangladesh ,

There are only long term prospects of transit trade with Nepal and there is a strong political desire within Nepal for this . More consideration is currently being given to the prospects for using Mongla as avi alternative transit port for Nepal .

* In the short to medium term , there are prospects

for provision of a small ICD at Srimongal for export tea traf fic

* A rail container service and associated ICD in Dhaka

is expected to attract over 50% of the various categories of container traffic . A rail based container service enjoys certain inherent advantages , but the rail service o p e r a tion must ta e r e1ia b1e and e f ficient »

* The most suitable site for an ICD at Dhaka is at

Kamal'apur , where over 18 Ha of BR owned land beside the main passenger station is available . There is no other suitable site for the purpose at Dhaka at which both rail and IWT facilities can be provided at reasonable cost -

* The ICD could be constructed at the Kamalapur site

which would be capable of modular expansion , in phases , to a capacity of approximately 78Q00 TEUs pa .

* Capacity is likely to be available for container

trains between Chittagong-Dhaka subject to some cons­ traints on timing „ A unit train service can be provided between Chittagong and Dhaka commencing with 2 trains weekly for the interim ICD and rising to 3 trains in each direction by FY02-3 .

* If the project is to be viable and compete effecti­

vely with other modes , then efficient commercially orien­ ted management and operation of the ICD and rail service are a must .

* Piirallel changes are required in institution^^ 1 regu­

lations , procedures and documentation which are obstacles to door to door container movement . These changes will have to be extensive to allow the rail container services to operate the way it has been proposed ■ These involve many public bodies including customs . These changes can be brought about progressively in advance of the full pro­ ject implementation „

■a- B e VI e f i t s a r i s i n g from the p r o j e c t i n c 1 u d e n o t o n 1 y

in travTsport cost savings but also other substantial indi­ rect benefits , These are reduction in inventory costs and fore?ign interest payments associated with imports and e’xports and reduced handling requiremevits at Chittagong port because of the reduced port dwell times for contai­ ners using the ICD .

* The introduction of a computer system at Chittagong

port is essential for efficient handling of containers „

* Investment in the ICD and associated rail services

is estimated as follows :

Phase 1 _— Taka 276 million

Phase 2 _- Taka 1Q7 mi1 lion