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RR RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
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INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 8640
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0700
RUEHML/AMEMBASSY MANILA 1494
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 0513
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 1205
RHHMUNS/COMSOCPAC HONOLULU HI
RHHJJPI/PACOM IDHS HONOLULU HI

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DHAKA 000120 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT PLEASE PASS USAID 
DEPT FOR SCA/INSB 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2020 
TAGS: EINV EAID ELTN BEXP PREL BG
SUBJECT: THE ROAD TO AWAMI LEAGUE RE-ELECTION: BANGLADESH 
MINISTER MAPS TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE 
 
REF: 09 DHAKA 568 
 
Classified By: Ambassador James F. Moriarty, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1. (C) Bangladesh's Communications Minister, who is 
responsible for the nation's bridges, roads and rail, told 
the Ambassador February 3 that completing major 
infrastructure projects in southwest, southeast and northern 
Bangladesh was critical to the Awami League's re-election 
chances in four years.  Minister Syed Abul Hossain said the 
massive Padma Bridge project was ready to move to the bidding 
process provided donors could agree on the packaging of the 
project's contracts; he requested USG assistance in 
persuading Japan to agree to the contract format preferred by 
the Government of Bangladesh (GOB), World Bank and Asian 
Development Bank (ADB).  The Minister also described progress 
on road projects in southeastern and northern Bangladesh. 
Finally, he requested USG support for an elevated road 
project in Dhaka.  The Minister, who has a reputation for 
less-than-honest business dealings, remains focused on 
delivering the infrastructure projects he and Prime Minister 
Sheikh Hasina have promised to Bangladesh voters. 
 
PADMA BRIDGE -- ONE STRUCTURE OR TWO? 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (C) At a February 3 dinner he hosted, Communications 
Minister Syed Abul Hossain expressed satisfaction with the 
levels of support donors planned to provide for the Padma 
Bridge project, which will for the first time link 
southwestern Bangladesh with Dhaka and the more prosperous 
eastern region of the country.  According to the Minister, 
the World Bank pledged $1.5 billion, the ADB $550 million, 
the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) $500 
million, and the Islamic Development Bank $130 million, 
primarily in soft loans. 
 
¶3.  (C) However, the Minister complained that JICA was 
insisting on dividing the contract for the bridge itself into 
two parts:  a contract for the bridge's sub-structure and one 
for the super-structure.  Under this plan JICA's loan would 
fund the sub-structure.  The GOB, World Bank, ADB and others 
opposed this plan on the grounds that a single over-arching 
contract for the bridge itself would limit competing claims 
of liability in the event of future problems.  The Japanese 
proposal to split the bridge into two structures, Hossain 
said, would allow two different contractors to lay the blame 
for any problems on the other contractor.  The Minister asked 
the Ambassador to use his good offices with Japan and USG 
support for the World Bank and ADB to urge JICA to reconsider 
its stance. 
 
DESPITE CHALLENGES INTEREST IN PADMA BRIDGE REMAINS HIGH 
--------------------------------------------- ----------- 
 
¶4.  (C) Hossain and the Ambassador agreed there were many 
companies interested in bidding on the Padma Bridge project. 
The Minister said he knew of 13 firms who had expressed 
interest.  The Ambassador added that one U.S. firm had 
demonstrated interest in the river dredgeing portion of the 
project and that there were sure to be more U.S. companies 
stepping forward as the bidding process progressed.  The 
Minister outlined an ambitious timeline, a call for 
pre-qualification submissions by the end of February, winning 
bidders and contracts finalized before the end of 2010 and a 
target completion date of 2013. 
 
DHAKA-CHITTAGONG AND DHAKA-MYMENSINGH ROADS 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) The other two linchpins in the Minister's 
infrastructure-for-elections plan are expanding roads from 
Dhaka southeast to Chittagong, Bangladesh's second largest 
city, and north to the district of Mymensingh.  The Minister 
said he had already awarded the contracts for $200 million 
project to expand the road that links the capital to 
Bangladesh's main port city, Chittagong.  Of the ten 
 
DHAKA 00000120  002 OF 003 
 
 
contracts that make up the Dhaka-Chittagong road expansion 
project, foreign, mainly Chinese, firms won seven bids, and 
local companies won three bids. 
 
¶6.  (C) Part of the Minister's plans for northern road 
expansion include a 32-km, $2 billion elevated expressway to 
be built through a public-private partnership project.  The 
Minister told the Ambassador that a Korean firm and a 
Thai-Italian consortium presented solid proposals during 
recent pre-bid discussions. 
 
ELEVATED ROAD AND RAIL WITHIN DHAKA 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (C) The Minister also urged the USG to support a Dhaka 
infrastructure project that would be tangible proof of the 
strong U.S.-Bangladesh relationship.  "We need a visible 
USAID project in the metropolitan area," Minister Hossain 
said.  He proposed the USG fund a 3-km, $34 million project 
to build an elevated road and rail crossing that would 
connect northwestern Dhaka with Zia International Airport in 
the northeast across Dhaka's military cantonment, which 
bisects northern Dhaka. 
 
¶8.  (C) The Ambassador noted that the USG had largely gotten 
out of the business of funding large infrastructure projects. 
 He described other examples of U.S. support for 
infrastructure in Bangladesh, including in the power sector 
and, most recently, in our commitment to build scores of 
cyclone shelters/schools around southern Bangladesh. 
 
REFORMING BANGLADESH RAILWAYS 
----------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (C) The Communications Minister described several 
initiatives to modernize Bangladesh's decrepit railways.  In 
addition to expanding the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, the 
Minister said construction to broaden the single rail line 
between the two cities to a double rail line would begin 
within a couple of months.  The Minister said the Prime 
Minister had also tasked him to develop an elevated rail 
system in Dhaka to alleviate the city's traffic crisis. 
According to the Minister, JICA had expressed interest in 
loaning funds for the $3 billion project; alternatively, the 
elevated rail system could be a public-private partnership 
project.  Finally, the Minister described plans to transform 
Bangladesh Rail into an independent, though government-owned, 
entity from its current structure as a government-run 
enterprise.  The Minister was confident that these plans to 
"corporatize" and then perhaps privatize Bangladesh Rail 
would greatly improve the firm's efficiency and quality of 
service. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10.  (C) According to contacts in the Dhaka-based donor 
community, Japan is pushing hard to divide the Padma Bridge 
project into a contract each for the sub-structure and 
super-structure.  The Japanese have lobbied at World Bank 
headquarters in Washington and at ADB in Manila, in addition 
to the GOB in Dhaka.  Donors speculate the Japanese 
government supports the two-contract format so it could 
encourage Japanese firms to bid on the sub-structure contract 
JICA would fund. 
 
¶11.  (C) Allegations of corruption continue to surround the 
Communications Minister (reftel).  Other high-ranking GOB 
officials have acknowledged to us problems with the 
Minister's way of doing business.  The Minister is also 
reputed to have close ties to China.  (NOTE: The Prime 
Minister is scheduled to visit China in April.  END NOTE.) 
That said, the Minister is clearly determined to fulfill his 
mission to develop infrastructure with a view to improving 
connectivity and securing votes for the Awami League.  The 
numerous projects described by the Minister all represent 
opportunities for U.S. business.  Mission Dhaka will work to 
publicize these opportunities and work with interested U.S. 
firms to secure contracts in a legal and transparent manner. 
 
 
 
DHAKA 00000120  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
MORIARTY