The construction and development works of much-awaited Hi-Tech Park kicked off yesterday to promote Foreign Direct Investment, nurture entrepreneurs and support techno-based start-up companies.
Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for ICT, yesterday laid the foundation stone of the park at a function at Kaliakoir in Gazipur.
Hosne Ara Begum, managing director of Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, and Moynul Hoque, managing director of Fibre@home, parent company of TechnoSity, were present, among others, at the event.
The TechnoSity Limited and Hi-Tech Park Authority signed an agreement on August 11 to expedite the construction and development works.
Sources said TechnoSity and Malaysia’s IRIS Corporation Berhad Technology would jointly develop the project.
TechnoSity will invest $25m for construction initially, and if necessary, the investment would be increased by 10 to 12 times.
Bangladesh TechnoSity Limited, one of the developers of the park, is tasked with developing Block 3 of the Hi-Tech Park.
TechnoSity will develop 40 acres of land under the block on a design, build, finance, own, operate (DBFOOT) basis between 6 and 10 years.
Following the development, it will operate the block for 40 years, which can be extended later for another 20 years. After 60 years, the block will be handed over to the government.
The target industries of Block 3 include IT/ITES, BPO and software, hardware manufacturing, multimedia and animation, electronic and robotics, bio-tech, robotics engineering, telecommunication, renewable energy, auto-mobile, education and training institutes, venture capitalists and incubators.
On June 28, Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority also signed an agreement with Summit Technopolis to develop block No. 2 and 5, which span over 65 acres and 29 acres of land respectively.
The Hi-Tech Park Authority itself will develop Block 1 on 65-acre land for administrative purpose. The tender evaluation process for developing Block 4 is yet to finish.
Kaliakoir Hi-Tech Park, the first ever in the country, is located at Kaliakoir upazilla in Gazipur, 40km north of Dhaka with 232-acre area.