Singapore firm willing to build world-class tourist hub at Teknaf

Doulot Akter Mala | Published: April 04, 2016 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

A Singapore-based firm has shown interest in investing a substantial amount of money to build a world-class tourism zone at Sabrang under public-private partnership (PPP) paradigm. Sabrang is located near Teknaf.
The company named Inter-Asia Group PTE Ltd recently submitted its pre-investment Expression of Interest (EoI) documents to the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA). The development of the zone would require an estimated investment of US$1.50 billion, the Inter-Asia indicated in its pre-EoI.
Director of the company I.C Ivor Pratap has placed the proposal with executive chairman of the BEZA Paban Chowdhury.
"We want to develop around 1000 acres land with a planned residential, leisure and relaxation, 'edutainment', entertainment and amusement, recreation and activities, commercial complex, education and healthcare and total security system including cyclone shelters," reads the proposal.
The company has selected international top-tier companies for development of this project titled 'Development of Tourism Zone Project at Sabrang'.
It had carried out survey at the location prior to submission of the proposal.
Paban Chowdhury said the authority is yet to invite proposal for the Sabrang tourism zone.
"We may invite investment proposal for the tourism zone by end of this year. The company has submitted the proposal voluntarily on the basis of their own study," said the BEZA chief. Â
The Singapore-based company has conducted their survey and found the place lucrative for developing a tourist zone, he added.
The proposed Sabrang tourism park will be the first special park in Cox's Bazaar district, encompassing an area of 1027 acres.
It is an amazing landscape of hill-and-sea territory with road, airport and land-port connectivity.
BEZA has acquired 882.26 acres of land in the Sabrang area of Teknaf. The proposed tourism zone is 5-kilometre away from Teknaf town.Â Teknaf-Shahparirdwip road is the only access to the proposed EZ. It connects to the National Highway in a stretch of five kilometres.
Cox's Bazaar domestic airport is at a distance of 96 kms from the proposed EZ. It takes only one and a half hours by road to reach the EZ from airport.
Teknaf land port is only 9-km away from the proposed zone in the vicinity of the Bay of Bengal and world's longest unbroken sea beach.
doulot_akter@yahoo.com