If Bangladesh Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu’s statement is anything to go by, southern Bangladesh would not only emerge as a prominent business hub of the country in the future, but also turn out to be the ‘industrial centre’ of South Asia!
Speaking as the chief guest at the three day-long Sheikh Fazlul Haq Moni cultural festival, organised by the Gopalganj branch of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy recently, Amu reportedly said, “Once the Padma Bridge, the Mongla and Payra ports are completed, Southern Bangladesh would be the industrial centre of South Asia.”
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Earlier, Amu is said to have maintained that Barisal, which is located in south-central Bangladesh, will be developed into Bangladesh’s largest economic zone in a decade, who also went on to add that the Government has already started work for the development of Barisal region, including that of the Payra seaport.
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Once operational, Payra seaport will be the third seaport in Bangladesh. According to reports, the full-fledged port activities in Payra, which would have capacity to house 75,000 containers, is expected to start by 2023.
The other important port, Mongla, is situated at the confluence of the Pashur River and the Mongla River and lies about 62 miles north of the Bay of Bengal, well connected with the major inland river ports and the rail terminal at Khulna.
To boost the economy of the southern region of Bangladesh, Amu in 2015 is said to have maintained that a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) would be set up on 604 acres of land in Barisal and Bhola.
