The government has appointed an Indian joint venture for expediting the development and construction of the five proposed economic zones, and to attract foreign as well as private sector investment.
Additional Secretary of the Cabinet Division Mustafizur Rahman told journalists on Sunday that the proposal from the PMO for appointing an advisory consultant was approved by the cabinet committee on public purchase. He added that the new investment proposals for the five zones will come through the foreign consultant in the future.
According to the PMO proposal, the selected firm will also carry out investment promotion activities to attract foreign and private investors to the economic zones under the World Bank project titled “Support to Capacity Building of Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority,” said a senior official of Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA).
The BEZA official added that the government agencies have failed to attract foreign and local investors, which is a vital matter for a country like Bangladesh.
Earlier last week, Abdus Sobhan Sikder, the principal secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), sent a proposal to cabinet committee on public purchase for the appointment of a transaction advisory service firm.
For a cost of Tk19.99 crore, the cabinet committee approved the joint venture led by Price Water House Coopers Private Limited India (PWC) while the two other firms are Mahindra Consulting Engineers Ltd, India and Infrastructure Investment Facilitation Company Bangladesh. The PWC obtained the highest number in terms of technical and financial evaluation.
The World Bank’s financial wing International Development Association has already endorsed the proposal sent by the PMO. The WB-supported project has already begun and it is expected to be completed by June 2016 at a cost of Tk76.20 crore.
As per the PMO proposal, the consultant firm will be assisting the authority to identify the industries that will be suitable for the economic zones, and prepare contractual schemes for public private partnership projects.
The appointed firm will also be responsible for selecting the private developers for the construction of the five zones; as well as developing one-stop service for the five economic zones for assisting in customer relationship management.