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by Naim-Ul-Karim
DHAKA, June 8 (Xinhua) -- The Bangladeshi government in collaboration with China Machinery Engineering Corporation ( CMEC) has implemented the country's largest-ever ICT project which brought nearly 20,000 government offices across the country under a nationwide connectivity.
Bangladesh's highest economic policy-making body on July 3, 2013 approved the China-financed 13.33 billion taka project titled "National ICT Infra-Network for Bangladesh Government Phase-II (Info-Sarker)".
After the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladeshi Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal had then said the Chinese government will provide 10.87 billion taka as a loan for the project and the remaining expenditure would be borne by the government.
Project Director of Info-Sarkar Saiful Islam told Xinhua Tuesday that "the Info Sarker project is the main project for the building of digital Bangladesh. And this is the largest project of the ICT division as well as for the digital Bangladesh building."
"We've done it in collaboration with CMEC," he said, adding the Chinese government has extended all-out support in implementing the project.
"And we have successfully completed our project. As I mention it earlier that this the largest project of Bangladesh," he said on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the Info Sarker Project and inauguration of the Nation Wide Connectivity" held in Dhaka's Pan Pacific Sonargaon hotel where, among others, ministers, senior government officials and representatives of the local and foreign companies including Huawei Technologies Bangladesh Limited, local Summit Communications, Fiber@Home and state-owned BTCL took part.
At the end of the project closing ceremony, Bangladeshi State Minister for Finance Abdul Mannan and State Minister for ICT Division Junaid Ahmed Palak handed over crests to companies including Huawei and China Machinery Engineering Corporation which supported to make the project a success.
They expressed the hope that China will continue its support to Bangladesh's ICT infrastructure development initiatives and thanked specially China Machinery Engineering Corporation for its leading role in implementing the project.
"It's a matter of immense pleasure for us to have the opportunity to work for such an important Bangladesh project," said Xing Yunfei, general project manager of China Machinery Engineering Corporation.
"Hope in future we'll have more opportunities to contribute to Bangladesh's efforts to make a digital Bangladesh."
Under the project, Islam said, 18,130 government offices at the district and sub-district levels have been brought under an ICT network, paving the way for the prime minister's office and other ministries and departments in Dhaka to establish direct communications around the country.
Apart from this, he said, 800 video conferencing systems have also been installed at different offices, including the ministries, government departments and training centers.
"We have established a digital recovery center as well as huge things for this project. So it is a successful completion for the project," Islam said.
"We are proceeding ahead to the digital Bangladesh. This is the dream of our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. And this is basically the dream of our father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He (Mujib) had a dream that he will build a Sonar Bangla (Golden Bengal). And this the final product of Sonar Bangla." (1 U.S. dollar equals to 79 taka) Enditem
