1. Harnessing Inland Waterways for Inclusive Trade Among Bay of Bengal Countries
- Author:
- Veena Vidyadharan
- Publication Date:
- 05-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- East-West Center
- Abstract:
- The transboundary rivers Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna along with their tributaries and distributaries create a vibrant water grid connecting their riparian countries. Historically, these rivers have played a prominent role in shaping the economy of the Indian sub-continent as a major means of trade and transportation. In the post-colonial era, new political boundaries between countries mostly cut off these riverine networks because the priority of the newly-established countries and their governments was to develop road and rail networks for internal consolidation and integration more efficiently. Hence, waterways connectivity among new regional countries was comparatively neglected. India and Bangladesh, for example, share 54 transboundary rivers. Despite existing bilateral agreements for using designated riverine routes for trade and transit, only in the past few years have infrastructural development initiatives started in India for constructing river terminals, multimodal terminals as well as fairway development. And there are other opportunities.
- Topic:
- Development, Infrastructure, Regional Integration, and Ecology
- Political Geography:
- Bangladesh, South Asia, India, Indo-Pacific, and Bay of Bengal