Bangladesh to get ADB loan to improve railway ‎

Bangladesh railways is a getting a big boost with loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) that will help the national economy and boost subregional trade.   The government of Bangladesh and ADB signed agreements in Dhaka on Sunday for $505 million in loans to further improve the country's railways.  "The assistance will help railways better serve needs of people and movement of goods, and help improve domestic and subregional trade," said Kazuhiko Higuchi who signed the agreements on behalf of ADB.   He said the “project will also help improve the overall railway transport system in Bangladesh, and aims to reduce transport costs and improve logistics of strategic corridors, such as Dhaka-Chittagong link, for subregional trade."   The South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Railway Connectivity Project will help upgrade the 72-kilometer Akhaura-Laksam section of the Dhaka-Chittagong railway corridor to a double track dual-gauge railway line, along with modern signaling equipment.  The total project, executed by Bangladesh Railway and expected to be completed by 2022 will cost $805 million. The European Investment Bank (EIB) will cofinance the project with $175 million while the government of Bangladesh will provide $125 million. (Source: Reuters)