State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam on Thursday said Singapore has long had a proposal for a Bay Terminal at Chittagong Port, which came up for discussion during her recent visit to the country.
"You know that the Singapore government has had a proposal for a Bay Terminal at our Chittagong Port for a long time. They have talked about that," she told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Shama Obaed said they also visited one of the projects where they have a waste-to-energy, and they have shown how they produce energy by managing waste.
During her first official visit to Singapore, the state minister met Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan and its State Minister for Foreign Affairs Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim separately and discussed issues of mutual interest.
She also visited the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA), where she met Regional CEO, Middle East, South Asia, Africa and Türkiye, PSA Vincent Ng, and senior officials.
The state minister was briefed on PSA’s global operations and its use of automation and advanced technologies to develop efficient, sustainable and smart ports.
Vincent Ng expressed PSA’s interest in participating in the Bay Terminal project in Bangladesh, noting its potential to significantly enhance Chittagong Port and Bangladesh’s trade and connectivity, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The state minister welcomed PSA’s interest and expressed hope for enhanced cooperation in port development, logistics, technology transfer and capacity building, in line with Bangladesh’s priorities of industrialisation, infrastructure development and connectivity.
"We discussed ways to deepen cooperation, including expanding trade and strengthening our energy partnership. We are also making good progress on a bilateral Free Trade Agreement, which will create more opportunities for businesses in both countries," said the Foreign Minister of Singapore.
He said Singapore and Bangladesh share a longstanding partnership and close people-to-people ties.
Bangladesh and Singapore on Tuesday expressed hope for the early conclusion of the Bangladesh-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and emphasised stronger business-to-business engagement.
The two countries also exchanged views on energy security, including risks to energy supplies, shipping and global supply chains, as well as climate change, water security, and illegal and irregular migration.
