Fund for Gorai dredging assured
Netherlands to join other donors in building Ganges Barrage
The Netherlands is willing to join a global consortium to construct the Ganges Barrage, but unwilling to take a lead in organising the group, the visiting Dutch minister said yesterday, reports UNB. Jan P Pronk, the Dutch Minister for Development Cooperation who held official level talks here, said international agencies like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank should initiate the group. "We are willing to join the consortium, but we are too small to lead," he told a press conference in the NEC conference room in the capital, ending his week-long visit to one of its main aid-recipient countries. Finance Minister Shah AMS Kibria, who led a Bangladesh team in the official-level meeting on Wednesday, also spoke at the joint news conference, welcoming the Dutch gesture for providing assistance for the planned Ganges Barrage.
"The Ganges Barrage Project is an ambitious one. We also need support from other countries and agencies ... the Japanese government has already indicated their willingness to provide fund for the project," he said. The Ganges Barrage, still at the planning level, may require at least six billion US dollars, according to the preliminary estimates by government officials. The Netherlands' willingness to participate in the international consortium for the construction of the barrage is part of the European country's interest in Bangladesh's water sector. "These are not merely engineering works, it's the survival of your people," said Pronk, whose deltaic country has a lot of experiences in water management and land reclamation.
He said his country has been working on a master plan for the overall development of the Meghna Delta which is "one of the most fascinating water in the world". The plan will include protection arrangements. He said the plan could be completed in 15 months and its implementation would also require billions of dollars. "You will also need an international consortium for the Meghna Delta project". "The Dutch government is also willing to participate in this project, but don't ask me about the amount the Netherlands could contribute because it's a matter of future," Pronk told the conference. The Meghna Delta project will be a long-term scheme and its implementation will depend on the Bangladesh government's priority, cost-effectiveness and willingness of the international community, he said. He appreciated the Ganges Treaty with India and said Bangladesh had requested his government to provide fund for the Gorai dredging project. He informed that they would provide the fund, but the amount is yet to be decided.
Replying to a question, the visiting Netherlands minister also indicated his country's willingness to be involved with land-reclamation project in Bangladesh, using its experiences at home. The Dutch minister informed the newsmen that his country's priorities are education, health and water resources. Kibria said rural electrification is another priority area for the Bangladesh government and requested the visiting minister to give consideration for Dutch support in this area. Asked about the size of annual Dutch assistance to Bangladesh, Pronk said the average assistance from his country is some 45 million US dollars. He, however, would not mention any pledge this year as his country is in the process of drawing up a new aid policy.
Future assistance commitment will be made under the new policy which will be finalised after a meeting with the recipients in the Netherlands in September next. Asked whether his country would help Bangladesh resolve the GSP problem in the European Union, he said it's a matter of trade policy of the Union. He hoped that the problem could be solved shortly.
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