Building seamless connectivity: Road

1. Background

• has identified regional connectivity transport network under different regional initiatives under UNESCAP, SAARC, SASEC, BIMSTEC and BCIM. However, the core highway network that has been identified for greater benefits of Asian countries is Asian Highway system.

• The Asian Highway project was conceived by UN-ECAFE (United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East) in 1959 with the aim of establishing regional cooperation among the main land countries of Asia, based on road transport linkages. This name was subsequently changed to UN-ESCAP (United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific) in 1974.

• The is now 142,000 km long and across 32 Asian countries with linkages to Europe. The Asian Highway is now one of the three pillars of Asian Land Transport Infrastructure Development (ALTID) project comprising the Asian Highway, the Trans-Asian Railway and facilitation measures for border crossing.

• In order to formalize the establishment of the Asian Highway network and to ensure commitment of the member governments towards its further development, standardization and maintenance, an Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network was adopted on 18 November 2003 in Bangkok. It was opened for signature in Shanghai, China from April 26 to 28, 2004 and thereafter at United Nations Headquarters in New York from May 01, 2004 to December 31, 2005.

• The cabinet decided in a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on June 15, 2009, gave its approval to the decision about Bangladesh's joining Asian Highway Network.

2. Asian Highway Routes in Bangladesh

Three Asian Highway Routes cross Bangladesh namely, AH1, AH2 and AH41. Total length of the AH routes in Bangladesh is 1757 km.

o AH1. Tamabil-Sylhet-Sherpur-Narshingdi-Katchpur-Dhaka-Mawa-Charnajat-Bhanga- Bhatiapara-Kalna Ferry Ghat-Narail-Jessore-Benpole. (Total Road Length 491 km)

o AH2. Tamabil-Sylhet-Sherpur-Narshingdi-Katchpur-Dhaka(South)-Dhaka (North)- Joydevpur-Kaliakoir-Elenga-Hatikamrul-Bogra-Gobindagonj-Rangpur-Beldanga- Panchgarh-Banglabandha. (Total Road Length 512 km)

o AH41. Teknaf-Cox’s Bazaar-Keranirhat-Feni-Moinamoti-Katchpur-Dhaka (South)- Dhaka(North)-Joydevpur-Kaliakoir-Hatikamrul-Banpara-Dasuria-Paksey-Kustia- Jeneidah-Jessore-Khulna-Mongla. (Total Road Length 754 km)

Page | 1 3. Current Status 3.1 AH1. The most of the road section along this route is 2-lane with some 4-lane section in urban areas and bazaar location. There are two missing links in this corridor: (a) the Padma Bridge gap at Bhanga and (b) Kalna Bridge gap. In addition there is one sub-standard section between Bhatiapara-Narial-Jessore (bellow AH standard II, See Table 1).

Projects. a. The feasibility study and detailed design are currently being prepared under ADB assisted Subregional Road Transport Project Preparatory Facility (SRTPPF) for the section between Tamabil and Katchpur (283 km).

b. The detailed design for Dhaka-Mawa section (64 km) is being prepared under SRTPPF.

c. BBA is also implementing Padma Bridge Project including its approach roads.

d. The section between Bhatiapara and Jessore via Narail (59 km) is currently not included in any project.

e. Once the feasibility study and detailed designs for the road sections mentioned above are ready, investment project must follow to upgrade the sections.

3.2 AH2. The most of the road sections along this route is 2-lane with some 4-lane section in urban areas and bazaar locations. There is no missing links and no substandard section in this corridor (See Table 2). However, investment will be needed to upgrade the route to AH Standard I.

Projects. a. The feasibility study and detailed design are currently being prepared under SRTPPF for the section between Tamabil and Katchpur (283 km).

b. SESEC Road Connectivity Project is going to upgrade Joydevpur-Chandra-Tangail-Elenga Road section (70 km) with ADB, OFID, ADFD financing.

c. Feasibility study and detailed designs are being prepared for section Elenga-Hatikamrul- Bogra-Rangpur (251 km) under SRTPPF.

d. Panchaghar to Rangpur road section (106 Km) needs improvement.

e. Banglabandha to Panchaghar Road (55 Km) is completed under RNIMP-II project, financed by ADB.

f. Once the feasibility study and detailed designs for the road sections mentioned above are ready, investment project must follow to upgrade the sections.

3.3 AH41. The most of the road section along this route is 2-lane with some 4-lane section in urban areas and bazaar location. There is no missing links and no substandard section in this corridor (Table 3). However, investment will be needed to upgrade the route to AH Standard I.

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Projects. a. The feasibility study and detailed design are currently being prepared under SRTPPF for the section Teknaf-Cox’s Bazaar- (288 km).

b. Section between Chittagong and Daudkandi (192 km) is being upgraded under 4-Laning of Dhaka-Chittagong Highway.

c. Section between Daudkandi and Katchpur (26 km) has already been upgraded to 4-lane.

d. The feasibility study and detailed design are being prepared under SRTPPF for Hatikamrul- Banpara section (51 km).

e. Banpara-Dasuria-Paksey-Kushtia-Jhenaidah (105 km) section is currently not included in any upgrading project.

f. Feasibility study is being prepared under SRTPPF for section Jhenaidah-Jessore-Khulna (107 km).

g. Feasibility study and detailed design are being prepared for Khulna-Mongla section (43 km).

h. Once the feasibility study and detailed designs for the road sections mentioned above are ready, investment project must follow to upgrade the sections.

3.4 Investment

Table 4 provides different interventions being carried out for different stretches of Asian Highways. It can be seen from Table 4 that approximately 1415 km stretches will need to be upgraded to AH-1 standard. Present traffic volume suggests that some sections currently classified as AH standard II will remain adequate for some time. However, eventually all sections will need to be upgraded to 4-lane highway with increasing traffic volume. The feasibility study and detailed designs are primarily being carried out for upgrading AH sections to 4-lane highways. Total Investment Cost for upgrading 1415 km is approximately USD 4,422 million (around USD 3.125 million per km). However, more accurate estimation of investment cost will be ascertained after the feasibility study and detailed designs have been completed.

3.5 Challenges.

3.5.1 Securing funds for restoring missing links

a. Assistance from Development Partners. Securing financing for upgrading AH routes is a major challenge for many countries. It is therefore crucially important that development partners come forward with the assistance for infrastructure development. In Bangladesh, Asian Development Bank (ADB) with the co-financing from OPEC Fund for Development (OFID) and Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) is going to provide USD 258 million for a 70-km stretch on AH-2 under SASEC Road Connectivity Project. However,

Page | 3 the fast-track development of entire Asian Highway needs injection of huge investment. Development partners can play a significant role in bridging the gap between government financing and the total financing need, provided each country draws up a realistic development plan in consultation with neighboring countries.

b. Regional Development Fund. The development of AH network should be seen as regional asset for facilitation of regional integration, enhancing trade and commerce and thereby contributing to economic development and poverty reduction. Hence, the argument for a Regional Development Fund becomes stronger when it comes to develop cross- border infrastructure facilities. Under SAARC, the SAARC Development Fund (SDF) was inaugurated in 2010 during the 16th SAARC Summit in Thimphu. SDF has three Windows i.e. Social, Economic and Infrastructure. However, its Social Window is now in operation. There is an urgent need to open Economic and Infrastructure Windows in order to provide maximum benefits of SDF for accelerating Economic growth and Infrastructure development in SAARC countries.

c. Enhancing Private Sector Participation in infrastructure. Public Private Partnership (PPP) could be one of the best ways to attract private capital for commercially viable infrastructure projects. However, the experience of PPP projects in many South Asian countries has been very limited. South Asian countries therefore can learn from the successful examples of PPP projects implemented by some countries such as . The institutional capacity can be enhanced through exchange of knowledge and experience.

3.5.2 Harmonization of standards.

a. Harmonization of design standards for roads, bridges including sign and signals, design speed, loading, etc. are crucially important for cross-border road infrastructure. Regional collaboration trough exchange of ideas and practice is extremely important to ensure such harmonization.

b. In order to ensure desired level of service and road safety, all regional connectivity roads need to be upgraded to minimum 4 lanes with a separate provision for non-motorized or slow-moving vehicles. However, widening of roads becomes challenging when acquisition involves huge agricultural land. In addition, design speed designated for AH routes (Table 6) requires flatter side slope (3:1) for road embankment and milder radius for road curves than those we provide for our roads (2:1). Clearly, it requires additional land acquisition for road embankment. Hence, participating countries need to come to a consensus on acceptable standards so that the need for land acquisition can be minimized.

c. Overloading of vehicles accelerates deterioration of road pavement and hence standardization of vehicle loading is crucially important for development of cross-border road network. Bangladesh has already put in place a national axle load control policy, “Axle Load Control Station Operation Policy-2012” to allowable loads.

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3.5.3 Prioritization of projects.

a. Bangladesh emphasizes improving those highway corridors that allow landlocked countries to access two seaports in Bangladesh—Mongla and Chittagong. Hence, fast track improvement of AH41 and Joydevpur-Banglabandha section of AH2 can enhance regional integration of four countries namely, , , India and Bangladesh. This corridor is also being focused under South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC). It is mentioned here that the joint communiqué signed in 2010 between Bangladesh and India allows has opened up the opportunity of connectivity between Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and India particularly the eastern part of India.

b. The development of road infrastructure involves huge land acquisition and resettlement activities. As a land scarce country, Bangladesh confronts with the challenges of acquiring land for road infrastructure. Hence, Bangladesh attaches priority on those road stretches that will see concurrent development on both sides of the border and ensure greater regional economic benefits.

c. The improvement of substandard sections is crucially important for reaping the benefit of a road network. Each country should identify the substandard sections in its territory and evaluate the improvement of those stretches from the marginal benefit point of view. For example, the access of traffic from Nepal to Mongla and Chittagong Ports can be greatly enhanced if improvement of only 49 km stretch (Panitanki to Fulbari section in India) is completed. Similarly, improvement of 115 km stretch (Jaigaon to section in India) can ensure easy access of traffic from Bhutan to Mongla and Chittagong Ports. It is mentioned here that the Joint Communiqué signed between Bangladesh and India allows Nepal and Bhutan to use Mongla and Chittagong Ports. Clearly, the improvement of small stretches can put important corridors into operation and thus benefit neighboring countries.

3.5.4 Multimodal Transportation

Each mode of transportation has its comparative advantage in terms of costs, flexibility, and accessibility. The integration of mode can lead to lowering of overall cost of transportation at the same time minimizing environmental externalities. Hence, for cross-border connectivity, we must prepare a multimodal transportation plan for sustainable development. Bangladesh is going to put in place a National Integrated Multi-modal Transportation Policy very soon.

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Table 1. Status of AH-1 Sections km Class Projects Tamabil Sylhet 53 II FS & DD ongoing Sylhet Sherpur 39 II FS & DD ongoing Sherpur Mirpur 45 II FS & DD ongoing Mirpur Sarail 61 II FS & DD ongoing Sarail Narhsingdi 47 II FS & DD ongoing Narhsingdi Katchpur 38 II FS & DD ongoing Katchpur Dhaka (South) 10 II Already upgraded Dhaka (South) Mawa 35 II FS done DD ongoing Mawa Charjanajat 0 Below III Padma Bridge Charjanajat Bhanga 29 II FS done DD ongoing Bhanga Bhatiapara 37 II To be upgraded Bhatiapara Kalna FG 3 Below II To be upgraded Kalna FG Narail 24 III, Bellow III To be upgraded Narail Jessore 32 III To be upgraded Jessore Benapol 38 II To be upgraded

Table 2. Status of AH-2 Sections km Class Projects Dhaka (South) Dhaka (North) 20 I Developed Dhaka (North) Joydevpur 22 I Developed Joydevpur Kaliakoir 20 II SASEC ongoing Kariakoir Elenga 50 II SASEC ongoing Elenga Hatikamrul 40 II FS & DD ongoing Hatikamrul Bogra 56 II FS & DD ongoing Bogra Gonbindaganj 34 II FS & DD ongoing Gonbindaganj Rangpur 71 II FS & DD ongoing Rangpur Beldanga 67 II To be developed Beldanga Panchagarh 76 II To be developed Panchagarh Banglabandha 56 II Developed as Class II Table 3. Status of AH41 Sections km Class Status Teknaf Cox's Bazar 87 II FS and DD ongoing Cox's Bazar Keranirhat 92 II FS and DD ongoing Keranirhat Chittagong 49 II FS and DD ongoing Chittagong Feni 88 II Upgrading ongoing Feni Moinamoti 63 II Upgrading ongoing Moinamoti Daudkandi 43 II Upgrading ongoing Daudkandi Katchpur 26 I Upgraded to 4-lane Hatikamrul Banpara 51 II FS & DD ongoing Banpara Dasuria 23 II To be upgraded Dasuria Paksey 9 II To be upgraded Paksey Kushtia 31 II To be upgraded Kushtia Jhenaidah 42 II To be upgraded Jhenaidah Jessore 45 II FS ongoing Jessore Khulna 62 II FS ongoing

Page | 6 Khulna Mongla 43 II FS and DD ongoing

Table 4. Status of Asian Highway Routes Length Already Feasibility Currently Length to Missing Sub- (km) developed or Study not be Link standard currently and/or included developed Sections under Detailed in any as Class I (Class development Design study/ (km) III or to 4-lane ongoing Program below) Highway (km) (km) (AH Class I) Padma AH-1 491 10 347 134 481 River at 59 Mawa & Modhumati River at Kalna AH-2 512 112 201 199 400 - - AH-41 754 220 429 105 534 - - Total 1757 342 977 438 1415 - 59

Table 5. Asian Higway Classification

Table 6. Design speed for Asian Highway

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Building seamless connectivity: Railway

1. Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) routes enter Bangladesh from three directions from Indian state of , i.e., Gede, Singabad and and exits through Gundum-Myanmar or Shahbajpur-Mahishosan, India.

TAR Route 1. Gede (West Bengal, India)-Darsana-Ishuradi-Jamtoil-Joydevpur-Tongi-Akahura-Chittagong- Dohazri-Gundum (Myanmar border station)

Sub-route-I: Tongi-Dhaka Sub-route-II: Akhaura-Kulaura-Shahbazpur-Mahishasan (India)

TAR Route 2. Singabad (West Bengal, India)-Birol-Dinajpur-Parbatipur-Abdulpur-Ishurdi- and thereafter following the rest of the route and sub-routes of Route 1

TAR Route 3. Radhikapur (West Bengal, India)-Birol-Dinajpur-Parbatipur-Abdulpur-Ishurdi and t and thereafter following the rest of the route and sub-routes of Route 1

The TAR routes provide enhances connectivity in South Asian region. While all the routes are connected with India, TAR Route 2 can provide connectivity with Nepal through India and TAR Route 1 can connect India, Bangladesh and can be extended to serve Myanmar.

2. Status

2.1 Missing Link. There is a missing link between Dohazari, Chittagong and Gundum near Myanmar border. Bangladesh with the assistance of ADB is now conducting feasibility study of this section.

2.2 Closed sections Birol-Radhikapur. Train operation between Radhikapur (West Bengal) and Birol (Bangladesh), i.e., entry point of TAR Route 3 has been closed since April 2005 due to conversion from Meter Gauge to Broad Gauge in Indian side. Following this conversion of gauge in Indian side, Bangladesh took up a project in 2009 to convert existing meter gauge to dual gauge for compatibility of gauge on both sides of the border. It is expected that train operation will resume after completion of the project.

Shabazpur-Mohishasan. This section has been closed since July 2002 due to poor condition of railway track and bridges.

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Building seamless connectivity: Information and Communication (ICT) and Digital Connectivity

Bangladesh is determined to achieve rapid progress in the sector of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Bangladesh to ensure its development and economic growth is continuing efforts for creating an ICT enabling environment at all strata of the society. In this respect, ICT is one of the thrust sectors and ICT has been considered as the driving force in achieving Vision 2021: Digital Bangladesh.

Following issues can be considered to establish digital connectivity among ESCAP member states:

• Develop translator in the different regional language and exchange content may have significant impact on learning and agriculture production. • We can connect through terrestrial backbone fiber optic regionally besides submarine cable • Exchange of IT personnel among member countries. • Arrange workshop/seminar/conference to share achievements of different countries in the area of ICT based development efforts to collaborate within the international community through these programs.

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