BD-Japan joint platform meeting on February 24

The joint platform meeting of Bangladesh and Japan is scheduled to be held virtually on February 24, nearly after two years, according to sources.
The meeting is expected to focus on possible Japanese investment of US$ 7.0 billion in infrastructure projects of Bangladesh under public-private partnership (PPP) initiative, to be facilitated by the government-level arrangements.
Sources said the PPP Authority (PPPA) set the meeting schedule after getting green signal from Japan's Ministry of Land Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT).
The 3rd joint platform meeting was held on March 29, 2019. Though the 4th meeting was scheduled in Dhaka on March 12 last year, but was postponed following detection of coronovirus infection in the country.
The meeting was supposed to discuss six road and rail projects selected by the sub working group (SWG) of Japanese private investors formed by the MLIT.
Sources said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has already given the necessary clearance on holding the 4th meeting after getting a tentative schedule from the Japanese counterpart in this regard.
They, however, said this meeting would discuss on new projects as two projects selected earlier have been dropped by the authorities concerned.
The PPPA in the first platform meeting held in 2017 had placed 18 projects for G-2-G PPP arrangements, but the SWG later selected six projects - two multimodal transport hubs at kamalapur railway station and airport station, Chattogram-Cox's Bazar highway development, outer circular road, Inland Container Depot at Dhirasram and Mass Rapid Transit Line 2.
The estimated cost of all these projects combined is not less than $ 7.billion, sources said.
However, the airport station multimodal transport project and Dhirasram ICD project have been dropped as the Bangladesh Railway did not accept the concept proposals of the Japanese investor, Sojitz Corporation, on both projects.
The PPPA and BR officials said that they received no new proposal from the MLIT and SWG on the two BR projects.
"So, we're considering new projects to place in the 4th meeting for discussion," said an official, preferring not to be named.
Of the selected projects, BR has made good progress in Kamalapur Multimodal Transport Hub while Roads and Highways Department in Chattogram-Cox's Bazar highway project.
Earlier in July last, sources said, the PPPA and MLIT held a meeting virtually after postponement of the scheduled 4th meeting when names of the new projects were also placed.
These included Bhola-Barishal bridge project and deep water container terminal project of Payra Port Authority.

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