The India-Bangladesh development partnership has grown significantly in the recent years

The 19th India-Bangladesh LOC Review Meeting was held in Dhaka on October 27-28 during which both sides expressed satisfaction with the robust cooperation on Line of Credit (LOC) projects.

The meeting was held to review progress of 43 projects being taken up for implementation under Government of India Lines of Credit (LOCs) extended to the Government of Bangladesh, said a statement of the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh.

Joint Secretary (DPA-I), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India Sridharan Madhusudhanan led the Indian delegation and the Bangladesh delegation was led by Additional Secretary, ERD, Ministry of Finance, Government of Bangladesh Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiky.

Representatives of Indian companies executing the LOC projects in Bangladesh also participated in the meeting.

During the meeting, both sides expressed satisfaction with the robust cooperation on LOC projects, it said.

The two delegation heads appreciated the fact that all stakeholders on LOC projects are in constant touch, hold frequent and detailed review meetings and are making all efforts for the expeditious execution of projects, the statement noted.

Existing issues with project implementation and possible resolution mechanisms were identified and detailed time lines were determined for all steps involved in project implementation, said the statement.

Both sides agreed that the LOC review mechanism is an ideal platform to monitor the progress of projects, understand and remove procedural bottlenecks and ensure timely implementation.

According to the Indian High Commission statement, the successful implementation of projects under GoI LOCs and the continuous engagement of the two countries on ongoing and proposed projects underlines the commitment of both sides for creating new opportunities for shared development of the region and mutual benefit.

Both delegation heads recalled that the importance of bilateral co-operation between India and Bangladesh, utilizing the LOCs, was highlighted by the Prime Minister of India during the virtual Summit held with Prime Minister of Bangladesh on December 17 last year.

The India-Bangladesh development partnership has grown significantly in the recent years.

Bangladesh is the largest development partner under India’s LOC programme, with four LOCs worth USD 7.862 billion extended to Bangladesh for undertaking important infrastructure development projects in a wide array of sectors.

Total disbursements as of 25 October 2021 are approximately US$ 865 million.
Under the first LOC of USD 862 million, 12 out of 15 projects have already been completed and 3 projects are under execution.

Under the second LOC of USD 2 billion, 2 projects are already complete and the other projects are under various stages of implementation. Under the third LOC of USD 4.5 billion, 1 project has reached execution stage, while the other projects are under various stages of DPP finalisation and tendering.

There is considerable improvement in the speed of projects reaching execution/tendering stage which has been made possible with active cooperation of the project-executing agencies of both sides and with the extensive coordination efforts between the ERD and the High Commission.

With award of more than USD 990.85 million worth of contracts under the GoI LOCs during the past three years, and another USD 325.58 million being finalized within the next few months, the utilization rate of LOCs is set to increase significantly in the near future.