The government has planned to build a “green and smart” Purbachal city, having own power production and supply system and utility services, by 2019.
Singapore Cooperation Enterprise, a Singapore-based company, has shown interest in investing in the project to be implemented under public private partnership (PPP) programme.
The Bangladesh government has already given the company the go-ahead to invest in the project which will be implemented under the ‘Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) system.
“Bangladesh wants to complete the construction work of smart Purbachal city by 2019 as it was taken 19 years ago,” Housing and Public Works Minister Mosharraf Hossain told reporters yesterday after a meeting with visiting Singapore Senior Minister of State for Foreign and Home Affairs Masagos Zulkifli Bin Masagos Mohamad.
“The Singapore government wants to invest in the project. Bangladesh is now scrutinising the draft of a memorandum of understanding which will be signed with Singapore soon after consulting with the officials concerned,” he said.
Earlier, Masagos Zulkifli made the same proposal on behalf of the entrepreneurs during a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on Tuesday.
“Singapore wants to set up a power plant in Bangladesh and build a modern city near Purbachal,” Prime Minister’s Press Secretary AKM Shamim Chowdhury told reporters after the meeting. “The Singaporean entrepreneurs want to take up the project either on their own or as a joint venture.”
Mosharraf Hossain told reporters, “The Purbachal city will be built as a satellite city with all civic amenities. It will be a separate city from Dhaka. The construction work will be completed by 2019 during the present government’s tenure.”
“The city will have separate sewerage, water supply, waste management and recycling and own power production system. The Singapore government will provide technical and financial assistance for the project.”
Sembcorp Design and Construction will implement the project with financial support from Singapore Cooperation Enterprise, the minister added.
It would be a separate city, he said, adding that it would not depend on Dhaka city for anything. “They [entrepreneurs] want to take it as a model as it is their first investment in housing sector of Bangladesh.”
Replying to a query, the minister said, “The company is interested to build 62,000 public apartments in Purbachal area. They are also interested to construct buildings on private plots the government allotted among the people. They are keen to invest if the plot owners seek financial assistance.”
