There is a Chinese saying: If you want to be rich, you must first build roads. Improving the efficiency of transportation interconnection will release new opportunities for economic development and inject stronger impetus into economic development. The transportation of goods and the movement of people have brought more employment opportunities for people in remote and underdeveloped areas. Such an exciting development path is about to begin in Bangladesh.

Padma Bridge connection line map

On December 10, 2020, the Padma Bridge was successfully closed. After countless times of overcoming difficulties, the "Bridge of Dreams" in the hearts of the Bangladeshi people finally appeared on the Padma River, connecting people and people between the 21 districts in southern Bangladesh and the capital Dhaka. The movement of goods. The Padma Bridge is a key project under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. The bridge has a total length of 6.15 kilometers and will be basically completed in 2022. The Padma Bridge is of far-reaching significance for the economic development of South Asia and Bangladesh and the relations between Bangladesh and China.

Padma Bridge connects two major ports

Padma Bridge is a double-deck road-rail bridge. After its completion, it is expected to contribute 1.2% to the annual GDP growth of impoverished areas in southwestern Bangladesh, drive economic development in the region, and promote poverty reduction. The completion of the bridge will bring positive impacts to Bangladesh in many ways. First, it will remove the last obstacle that divides Bangladesh geographically. As the Padma and Jamuna rivers divided Bangladesh into geographically separated parts, the Bongo Bondu Bridge built on the upper reaches of the Jamuna River in 1998 removed the first geographical barrier. Nowadays, with the continuous progress of the construction of the Padma Bridge, Bangladesh will be integrated into the development of regional economic integration and the pace of achieving a high degree of interconnection will also be accelerated.

Bangladesh’s GDP has grown rapidly, its per capita income level has surpassed that of some countries in South Asia, and its poverty rate has also fallen sharply. In many indicators, Bangladesh is also ahead of South Asian countries and other least developed countries. Bangladesh has achieved such remarkable economic benefits. As early as 2018, it met the three relevant indicators set by the United Nations and successfully removed the title of “least developed country”. From the perspective of achieving sustainable development goals, the completion of the Padma Bridge will narrow the regional economic growth gap and improve the living standards of the people in the 21st District in the south.

A study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency showed that the time required to travel to and from the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, dropped by 10%, and regional economic output would increase by 5.5%. The Asian Development Bank predicts that by 2024, the average daily commute of that year will reach 29,278. An evaluation report issued by the World Bank in 2011 showed that the economic benefits brought about by the Padma Bridge project will increase the gross national product of the southwest region by an average of 1.7% per year, and the national gross national product by an average of 0.56% per year. The same report predicts that the poverty reduction rate in Southwest China will increase by 1%, and the national poverty reduction rate will increase by 0.8%.

The completion of the Padma Bridge shortens the distance between Dhaka and Mongla Port to 170 kilometers, which is shorter than the distance between Dhaka and Chittagong (264 kilometers). This will greatly reduce the travel time between the capital Dhaka and Mongla Port. . Increase the freight volume between Dhaka and Mongla Port, which also helps to ease the freight pressure on Chittagong Port.

The erection site of the steel girders of the Padma Bridge taken in Monshiganj, Bangladesh on November 21, 2020

The World Bank’s assessment report shows that the Padma Bridge enables direct connections to the two largest domestic ports in Bangladesh, and has become the Asian Highway No. 1 and the Trans-Asian Railway network (Sylhet-Kajipur-Dhaka-Malaysia). (Wa-Jessore-Benapol) is an important section connecting Kolkata, the eastern city of India, and the eastern part of Bangladesh.

Connectivity

An important goal of the Belt and Road Initiative is to build indispensable infrastructure for participating countries and use infrastructure to mobilize economic vitality, which has been used for several years. In order to comply with the development trend of the 21st century, China proposed the "One Belt One Road" initiative. The consideration behind it is that China firmly believes that roads, railways, and waterways are the prerequisites for ensuring sustainable economic development. The southern 21st district of Bangladesh lacks road and rail transportation networks and poor interconnectivity. However, this weak transportation area accounts for 27% of the country's area, close to 40 million (about a quarter of the total population of 160 million) Of the population lives here. The establishment of Padma's road-rail bridge will greatly promote the development of Bangladesh's transportation infrastructure, and the southern and coastal areas will subsequently become a hot spot for investment in factories, comparable to China's Yangtze River Delta Economic Zone, thereby reshaping the country's industrial structure. .

The Padma River Economic Belt is planned to be established in southern Bangladesh. The Chinese government invests in the railway track construction project and promotes it as a key investment project under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. This is because the Padma Bridge will directly connect to the rich resources of the Bay of Bengal. An undeveloped urban area.

In recent years, the business exchanges between Bangladesh and China have increased rapidly, and China's foreign capital inflows into South Asian economies have also increased. After the completion of major transportation infrastructure projects, convenient transportation enables Chinese investors to move domestic factories to underdeveloped areas in Bangladesh at a lower cost. Another highlight that attracts investors is that the Padma Bridge can reduce the travel time from the capital Dhaka to the port of Mongla. The distance between Dhaka and Mongla (170 kilometers) is less than the distance between Dhaka and Chittagong ( 264 kilometers). The increase in freight volume on the Dhaka-Mongla section can ease the freight pressure on Chittagong Port. The Padma Bridge, which stretches across the vast waters of the Padma River, is gradually taking shape. Investors have heard the wind and joined the army of buying land and renting land, heralding the vigorous industrialization of the southern region in the future.

Via Padma Bridge, through Asian Highway No. 1, Asian Highway No. 2, Asian Highway No. 41, Pan-Asian Highway No. 1, and Pan-Asian Highway No. 2, the underdeveloped southern regions of Bangladesh and neighboring countries also It will realize transportation connectivity and further stimulate investment growth. Relevant taxes and fees levied on roads, ports and other transportation facilities will greatly increase government revenue. In addition, the Padma Bridge is connected to Payara Port. Such a unique geographical advantage will inevitably bring huge economic benefits. The construction of the Padma Bridge is very important for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative.

As South Asia's position as an important sales market for Chinese products has become increasingly prominent, China is stepping up efforts to connect the entire South Asian subcontinent, during which the Padma Bridge will play an important role. Bangladesh can use this bridge to transport products to seven cities in the hinterland of India. , And depart from Mongla Port and Payala Port, and transport products to Nepal via the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor under construction. The Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor is one of the "six corridors" in the spatial layout of the Belt and Road Initiative. The completion of the Padma Bridge will also play an important role in the construction of the corridor.

The two countries join hands to build a bridge of people-to-people bonds

Undoubtedly, the 6.15-kilometer double-deck bridge greatly boosted the confidence of the whole country and at the same time made the Bangladeshi people have more solid trust in the Chinese people. The Padma Bridge project has attracted a lot of media attention and is bound to become a major test for the Bangladesh People’s Union led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina since it took office in 2009. The delays in the completion date of the project have also added to the bridge project. A lot of uncertainty.

At the beginning of the project, the Bangladeshi government regarded it as the top priority of the government's work, and it is expected to be completed in 2013. But when the World Bank withdrew the promised US$1.2 billion loan on the grounds of corruption allegations faced by the Bangladeshi government, this multi-billion-dollar transportation infrastructure investment project was so volatile that the then Minister of Communications Saiyi of Bangladesh De Abu Hussein resigned.

Subsequently, the Asian Development Bank, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and the Islamic Development Bank withdrew from the project. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina turned the tide and categorically rejected allegations of corruption, and at the same time announced the mobilization of Bangladesh's own resources to complete the construction of the bridge. Prime Minister Meng’s resolute attitude is China’s reassurance. China immediately proposed to build a bridge connecting nearly 170 kilometers of railway to the south, helping the southern districts to cross the barriers of the Padma River and realize transportation interconnection. Facts have proved that the World Bank’s "suspected corruption" allegations were found to be unfounded after investigations. The World Bank also solemnly apologized to Bangladesh for this, but this still did not shake the determination of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. It must be controlled by Bangladesh itself. The Bangladeshi government entrusted China Railway Bridge Bureau and China Railway Engineering Corporation to build the road sections and railway connections of the Padma Bridge. The project cost up to 3 billion U.S. dollars and more than 80% (2.67 billion U.S. dollars) was funded by the Export-Import Bank of China.

China’s helping hand made the dream of 170 million Bangladeshis come true. At the helm of the epidemic, the Bangladeshi people’s trust in China has reached an unprecedented level. People-to-people bonds are the key to advancing the spirit of the “Belt and Road” Silk Road. In December last year, after the Padma Bridge was successfully closed, many Bangladeshi people and their friends and relatives took a boat to the bridge for sightseeing. They took selfies with the bridge construction site as the background and uploaded them to social media. The accompanying text praised the Chinese engineers. . The bridge will not only promote social and economic development, but also help the two countries' diplomatic relations to deepen toward the China-Bangladesh strategic partnership reached during President Xi's state visit to Bangladesh in October 2016.

In a recent online seminar hosted by the Bangladesh-China Silk Road Forum, the Bangladesh-China International Relations Adviser, Koch Rizvi, said that Bangladesh-China relations have multiple levels of significance, especially in the past ten years. Development cooperation continues to reach new levels.

He said, “Chinese builders can be seen everywhere in Bangladesh. It is self-evident that Bangladesh and China have close cooperation and China’s contribution is huge. Bridge construction is the most obvious example of the friendship between the two countries.” The contributions made by China and the special economic zone investment indicate that the relationship between the two countries is stronger, deeper, and broader than ever before.

Infrastructure is very important for economic growth. Research shows that the positive correlation between infrastructure and economic output is applicable in many countries. Infrastructure is transmitted to economic output through investment, employment, trade, and human resources. Good infrastructure will improve production efficiency and national competitiveness. There is ample evidence that infrastructure and economic output are mutually causal, that is, the development of infrastructure will drive the increase of economic output, and high economic output will also feed back the infrastructure sector. At present, Bangladesh is working hard to get rid of the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic and achieve economic recovery. Padma Bridge will play an important role in it, and the economic growth it promotes is also sustainable. Editor/He Yuting