The World Bank (WB) is set to provide US$150 million to Bangladesh as loan for upgrading the cross border trade facilities to boost the regional trade.
In this regard, the Washington-based lender and the Economic Relation Division (ERD) of the Ministry of Finance signed an agreement on Thursday in Dhaka.
ERD Secretary Kazi Shofiqul Azam and World Bank Country Director Qimiao Fan signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides.
Bangladesh Land Port Authority will be assigned with the task to utilise the fund to develop and improve four land ports - Bhomra, Sheola, Ramgarh, and Benapole.
These land ports are extremely important to facilitating regional and transit trade, especially with India.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) will develop a National Single Window in a bid to allowing traders to submit all import, export and transit information required by Customs and other key regulatory agencies via a single electronic gateway.
This will facilitate faster and more transparent international trade procedures and reduce transaction time and cost for the private sector.
