Govt allocates Tk 4,189cr for infrastructure of Chinese EZ

The government today approved Tk 4,189 crore for the development of infrastructure for the Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone (CEIZ) in Chattogram.

The infrastructure package includes critical transportation facilities, such as link roads and a multipurpose jetty, as well as essential utilities, including a water reservoir, gas regulating stations, power substations, and dedicated industrial waste and effluent treatment plants.

The project was approved at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) held at the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka and chaired by Prime Minister and ECNEC Chairperson Tarique Rahman.

The CEIZ is located near the Karnaphuli Tunnel, which connects the economic zone to the country's main port.

The foundation stone of the project was laid by Chinese President Xi Jinping during his landmark visit to Bangladesh on October 14, 2016, marking the country's formal entry into China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The two governments subsequently signed a memorandum of understanding titled "Strengthening Investment and Production Capacity Cooperation", following which the Bangladesh government acquired 800 acres of land for the Chinese economic zone.

Despite its high-profile diplomatic launch in 2016, the exclusive economic enclave remained largely stalled for nearly a decade.

In 2023, the Bangladesh government appointed the China Road and Bridge Corporation as the contractor for developing the external infrastructure of the CEIZ.

The project gained fresh momentum after the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority submitted it to the Planning Commission on May 6, 2025.

The commission reviewed the proposal later that month, identified compliance gaps and inconsistencies, and sent it back to the Chief Adviser's Office.

The government submitted a revised Development Project Proposal (DPP) in August last year with a reduced cost estimate of Tk 3,859.89 crore. However, this version was also rejected by the commission for failing to comply with the project's initial guidelines.

The procedural deadlock was finally broken on May 21, 2026, when a fully revised DPP was submitted to the commission.

At today's meeting, Ecnec approved five projects worth Tk 7,036.36 crore, including the infrastructure development project for the Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone—the largest among the five—under the Prime Minister's Office. The project includes Tk 2,467 crore in Chinese loans.