
Close on heels of India and China agreeing to provide the much-needed financing, the plans of the Mongla Port Authority (MPA) to undertake a massive development work to expand, modernise and build the capacity of the port has received a major boost.
Media reports claimed this while adding Bangladesh Government has long been seeking external funds to develop the capacity of the port with the aim to reduce reliance on Chittagong Port, which is Bangladesh’s main seaport and is burdened with handling lion’s share of exports and imports including apparel shipments.
It may be mentioned here, after the opening of the Padma Bridge in June last year, Mongla Port’s importance has grown even as data from the MPA showed the port has handled 1.07 crore tonnes of cargo in the July-May of 2021-22, which was 1.19 crore tonnes in the entire 2020-21.