China’s envoy now apprehends delays in mega projects
The Chinese ambassador to Bangladesh has truly gone back on his assurance from five days ago that Bangladesh's mega projects involving Chinese nationals wouldn't normally face any hold-ups for the lethal coronavirus-imposed lockdown, within an indication of the escalating gravity of the disease.
The amount of deaths from the novel coronavirus has risen to 1,770 during writing. There have been a lot more than 71,000 cases worldwide, with the vast majority of those in mainland China.
Less than 10 % of the Chinese nationals had opted home for the Lunar New Year, the main festival of the year in China, Li Jiming, the Chinese envoy, had said in a press conference at the National Press Club on February 12.
But they will be quarantined and checked before being allowed back, he said, expressing hope that there will be no significant interruption to the task. The programme was organised by the Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry to provide an overall insight in to the coronavirus outbreak in China.
But in another discussion -- 'Current coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in China and our stand' -- organised by the Bangladesh-China Business Association (BCBA) yesterday at the same venue, he said there could possibly be delays as the Chinese nationals cannot return to work.
"A whole lot of Chinese nationals employed in major projects in Bangladesh can't return promptly after the spring festival holiday. A lot of them are technicians, engineers and project managers. Thus the progress of the projects might by delayed," he said yesterday.
The mega projects include the Padma bridge and its rail link, a 1320MW thermal power plant in Payra, a rail link connecting Chattogram to Cox's Bazar (Ramu), a tunnel beneath the Karnaphuli river and upgradation of the Dhaka bypass road.
The projects involve several Chinese companies and so are being implemented through Bridges Division, Bangladesh Railway, Power Division and the Roads and Highways Department.
Li said China was the largest source of imports for Bangladesh.
Because of tightened customs sanitation controls and suspension of procedures of many Chinese exporters, Bangladeshi companies, for the present time, might not be in a position to get their dependence on goods, equipment and recycleables promptly, he said.
The Chinese ambassador said an epidemic of such a scale would inevitably leave a dent on the economy.
Rumours are running high that the Chinese economy will eventually lose steam and economies closely associated with it'll suffer the most.
"Those aren't true," he said.
But such rumours can still affect the confidence of Bangladeshis doing business with China and negatively affect bilateral trade, Li said.
"In view of the concerns of the business community, I'd like to say, please trust China and be confident. Right now China is making huge economical sacrifices to support the virus. Chinese companies are also losing profits both in the home and abroad, and several Chinese projects are being halted."
The ambassador said the epidemic didn't come without its disturbing ramifications on the normal bilateral exchanges and monetary ties.
According to him, Bangladesh suspended on-arrival visas for Chinese travellers in early February and evacuated 312 Bangladeshi citizens living in metropolis of Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus.
According to new regulations of the Bangladeshi authorities, some Chinese airlines have reduced the frequency of flights between your two countries.
"Although the WHO has suggested strongly not to impose international travel restrictions in the wake of the epidemic, we fully understand the legitimate concerns of the Bangladeshi side to safeguard its own people. And our embassy will need all possible actions to avoid the virus from spreading to Bangladesh."
There are 171 Bangladeshi students still in Wuhan, according to Li.
Because of their own safety and health, local authorities and school managers have advised them never to leave their dorms.
Daily supplies including normal water, rice, oil, vegetables and other cooking materials are being sent to them by logistics personnel on a frequent and regular basis, Li added.
Muhammad Zamir, former chief information commissioner, urged the Chinese embassy to regularly post updates on the problem on its website.
There is absolutely no scope of having a political viewpoint on the problem as this is a worldwide crisis and not China's alone, said Salim Mahmud, information and research secretary of the Bangladesh Awami League.
Jadab Debnath, president of the BCBA, expressed hope of return to normalcy in 15 days.
"We at the BCBA firmly assume that China will be able to manage this terrible situation with great sincerity and maximum efficiency and could control the spread."
Despite having concerns, the business community has confidence in China's capability to control the deadly outbreak, he said.
Shyamal Datta, editor of the Bangla daily Bhorer Kagoj, urged the media to refrain from publishing rumours and creating panic.
