The two sea ports of Bangladesh Chattogram and Mongla can assist the landlocked Himalayan countries of Nepal and Bhutan besides North Eastern states of India by providing them access to the sea through them and have since assumed stragic significance.

 

The maze of waterways on which both ports are built forms an integral part of a Multi Modal network that links Bangladesh to the hinterland, a contiguous zone of neighboring countries including India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Thailand, according to a paper brought out by a think tank.

 

The Chattogram Port can also engage with the Sittwe Port in Myanmar, given its physical proximity to the country, and further with the Yangon Port in Thailand. Bangladesh’s seaports are important Maritime gateways for the neighboring countries, especially those landlocked, with potential to boost their EXIM trade

 

This also converges with the countries’ interest in strengthening cooperation—bilaterally and through the Bay of Bengal Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) —in the Bay region following the strategic resurgence of this maritime space. Indeed, Bangladesh’s seaports have the potential to increase trade and connectivity in six of the seven BIMSTEC member countries.

 

The seaports of Chattogram and Mongla are built on riverbanks but they are referred to as seaports because they are located a few kilometers upstream from the Bay of Bengal.