Communications Minister Obaidul Quader and S Samy Vellu, special envoy of Prime Minister's Department of Malaysia, shaking hands after signing a MoU in Kuala Lumpur Tuesday. Malaysian Prime Minister Mohd Najib Tun Razak is also seen behind them.

Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur to build a 6.15 km multi-purpose bridge across the river Padma, officials said in Dhaka on Tuesday.

The MoU will also help put in place other related infrastructure projects, they said.

"The MoU was signed by Bangladesh Communications Minister Obaidul Quader and Malaysia's special envoy to South Asia on infrastructure at the Malaysian Prime Minister's Department -- Dato Seri Samy Vellu," a senior official of the Communications Ministry said.

Obaidul Quader left Dhaka for Kuala Lumpur late on Sunday and the MoU was signed on Tuesday as scheduled earlier.

Before boarding a Kuala Lumpur-bound flight on Sunday night Mr Quader said the construction of the bridge was expected to begin in the next 10 months.

He expressed the hope that the next government would complete the construction that could take some four to five years.

During the talks with his designated counterpart, ahead of the signing of the MoU Obiadul Quader was assisted by accompanying officials Iqbal Mahmud, Secretary of the Economic Relations Division, Khandaker Anwarul Islam, Secretary of the Bridges Division and Shafikul Islam, Project Director of Padma Bridge.

"According to the MoU, Malaysia will mobilise the estimated cost of some $2.9 billion for building the bridge either from government fund or from private investors, to build the bridge on Build, Own, Operate and Transfer basis (BOOT)," a statement issued by the Bangladesh high commission in Kuala Lumpur said.

Bernama, Malaysian state news agency, said under the MoU, the Malaysian government will form a consortium of Malaysian companies to implement the project on BOOT basis.

The event at Kuala Lumpur was attended by Bangladesh Prime Minister's Malaysian counterpart Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

After the ceremony both the Prime Ministers exchanged greetings over telephone and termed the occasion a historic one.

According to the MoU, the funding for building the bridge will be decided in the next nine months until when the MoU will remain valid.

"Initially both the governments will take necessary steps to encourage and promote financial and technical cooperation for the purpose of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge project," the Bangladesh embassy statement said.

The MoU mainly aims to cooperation on the planning, development, finance, construction, management, administration and maintenance of infrastructure works on the basis of equity and mutual benefit on agreed terms and condition, the statement said.

It will encourage cooperation, knowledge and technology transfer and partnership between the two countries, it continued.

Both sides will now decide on the terms of reference of building the bridge, which was earlier estimated to cost some $2.9 billion, it has been stated.

"However the building cost is likely to be re-estimated as the cost of building materials and other relevant expenditures have increased in the meantime," an official at the Communications Ministry said.

Facts and data concerning such as how many years would be needed to build the bridge, what would be the rate of tolls and how and at what proportions the tolls would be shared by the relevant authorities of the two countries would be determined after the MoU, the official said.

Bangladesh accepted Malaysian offer of funding the bridge last October after the World Bank (WB) suspended delivery of its committed fund of $1.2 billion over alleged irregularities in the bidding process for the bridge.

The WB, probing the alleged irregularities in the bidding process for the bridge, has temporarily barred a unit of SNC-Lavalin, a big Canadian engineering company, from bidding in the Bank's new projects.

Besides the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) had confirmed $615 million, Japan $420 million and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) $140 million for the bridge across the river Padma.

Financial Express/Bangladesh/ 11th April 2012