Foreign operators will manage three major container terminals in Bangladesh -- Chattogram’s New Mooring Container Terminal, Laldia Terminal, and Keraniganj’s Pangaon Inland Container Terminal -- by December, the Shipping Ministry Secretary Mohammad Yousuf has said. We have made significant progress and expect completion by December.”Highlighting regional precedent, Yusuf said that foreign operators run ports in India, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. Strategically and geographically, handing over Chittagong to foreign operators is manageable,” he said. Reducing that time by half will cut costs for businesses and avoid unnecessary waiting charges.”Concerns have been raised by traders that foreign management of Bangladesh’s ports could increase service fees. Yousuf said disputes over scanner control between customs and port authorities would disappear under foreign operators, who would deploy modern scanning techniques, accelerating import-export operations and reducing lead times.
