Chinese engineering firm builds Bangladesh longest bridge - but paid for by nation
- The 4 mile bridge spanning the Padma River took 8 years to build amid corruption allegations and cost the country around US$3.6 billion
- The China Major Bridge Engineering Company Ltd built the structure, said to later feature a rail network connecting to Belt and Road projects
Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday celebrated the opening of the country’s longest bridge, which took eight years to build amid setbacks involving political conflict and corruption allegations.
The 6.51km (4.04-mile) bridge spanning the Padma River cost an estimated US$3.6 billion and was paid for with domestic funds after the World Bank and other global lending agencies declined to finance the project following a corruption scandal involving a Canadian construction company.
The bridge, which will open to the public on Sunday, will slash the distance between the capital, Dhaka, and Bangladesh’s second largest seaport, Mongla, by 100km (62 miles).
“The bridge belongs to the people of Bangladesh. It encapsulates our passion, creativity, courage, endurance and perseverance,” said Hasina at a ceremony in Mawa, about 31km southwest of Dhaka.
While not directly part of China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, the bridge was built by the China Major Bridge Engineering Company Ltd. and is seen by Beijing as a milestone for cooperation with Bangladesh, according to a statement by China’s Ambassador Li Jiming.
The China Railway Group has said the Padma Bridge will later feature a rail network that connects with other Belt and Road projects and will serve as an important link between China and a pan-Asian rail network.
Economists say the bridge will increase Bangladesh’s gross domestic product by an additional 1.3 per cent per year, adding to robust growth projections from the Asian Development Bank that predict Bangladesh’s US$465 billion economy will grow by 6.9 per cent in 2021-22, and 7.1 per cent in 2022-23.