Page 33 - Power and Ifrastructure-Final
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 The South Asia Sub-Regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Program brings together Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka in a project-based partnership that aims to promote regional prosperity, improve economic opportunities, and build a better quality of life for the people of the sub region.
The SASEC Road Connectivity Project, together with cofinancing, will expand and improve a 70 kilometer section of the Dhaka-Northwest corridor-the second busiest arterial route in the country. The narrow two-lane road currently suffers from serious congestion and high accident rates. Expanding the route to four lanes will help ease bottlenecks, reduce crashes, and provide the nearly seven million people living in the area with new business opportunities and better access to markets, schools and other social services.
The initiative will also upgrade land ports at Benapole and Burimari, which handle the bulk of goods transported between Bangladesh and India. These upgradations will boost trade volumes, improve traffic flows and reduce the loss of perishable goods.
Studies show upgrading regional transport corridors in Bangladesh will support the movement of about 18 million tons of freight in Bhutan, India and Nepal, boosting intra-regional trade across South Asia.
The SASEC program will also spur growth and development across the sub-region. Its work covers activities in many sectors including transport, trade, energy, the private sector, tourism and the environment
SASEC countries share a common vision of boosting intraregional trade and cooperation in South Asia, while also connecting to South-east Asia through Myanmar, to the People’s Republic of China and the global market. Integration of the transport network of South Asia is particularly crucial to countries such as Nepal and Bhutan and regions such as north-east India. Such integration, on the one hand, could serve to end their landlocked or semi-isolated status by providing shorter transport links to the sea ports and, on the other hand, could benefit Bangladesh through facilitation of trade with these regions.
  Saarc (source - Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges)
 Power and Infrastructure for Inclusive Growth
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