The government’s decision to avoid approaching multilateral development partners for funding for a prospective deep-sea port should have us all raising our eyebrows.
We certainly agree that a new port, able to handle large-scale maritime traffic in the region, would be a huge boon for the nation, and we support the decision to pursue this initiative.
What we have not been able to wrap our heads around is that the government has chosen to find alternative commercial, funding sources for the project, seemingly without even broaching the subject with multilateral development partners such as the World Bank and the ADB.
This seems questionable to say the least, given the rate of interest that these institutions charge would be significantly less than the best offer from any foreign commercial or even governmental offer.
Given the scale of the project, that percentage difference in interest rates between WB/ADB as compared to other offers, really adds up.
Since when did we become a rich nation able to throw away money on the government’s whims?
The reason given by the shipping ministry is that they are wary of approaching the World Bank following the recent Padma Bridge fiasco.
Their solution runs completely counter to what it should be doing in this situation.
Whereas, the government should be taking steps to ensure that the nation meets transparency requirements for World Bank loans, it is instead giving the nation further reason to question its sincerity and administrative competence.
