The government has selected the Indian branch of international consultancy company Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) Private Limited for ‘Project Management and Quality Assurance (PMQA)’ consultancy service to help implement the Bangladesh Regional ConnectivityProject-1. The Internal Resources Division has selected the consultant company on the basis of recommendation of the tender evaluation company, the sources in the Internal Resources Division said. Tk 34.46 crore would be provided by the authorities concerned to PwC India, having their address in Kolkata, for the consultant service, the sources added.

The World Bank (WB) has already approved the appointment of the company as the ‘Bangladesh Regional Connectivity Project-1’ will be provided with required financial assistance by the donor agency, according to the proposal that was approved by the cabinet committee on purchase last week. When contacted, a source in PwC Bangladesh said the PwC India will be implementing the project with experts from four countries -- Australia, Singapore, UK and India. An expert from the UK will be leading the team while some Indian experts will contribute with their knowledge in regional land ports, the source told The Independent. The objective of the project

is to improve conditions for trade through improving connectivity, reducing logistics bottlenecks and supporting the adoption of modern approaches to border management and trade facilitation, the proposal says.

The project consists of three major components including investment in infrastructure, systems and procedures to modernise key selected land ports essential for trade with India, Bhutan and Nepal, a high official of the Internal Resources Division told The Independent. “The Project will also finance measures to improve physical security and manage access risks at the Benapole land port, which experiences significant security and leakage problems,” he said.

“Activities to be financed under the project include a high-capacity perimeter fence, a CCTV system, and a gate pass system at the ports,” he added. At present, the country is playing a leading role in the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) which groups together Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan in a forum for multilateral cooperation.