Shawdesh Desk:

The Asian Development Bank, the Posts and Telecommunications Division, BTCL, and the Public-Private Partnership Authority signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday to develop Bangladesh’s first green data centre under a public-private partnership model.

PPPA director general (finance and administration) AKM Abul Kalam Azad, Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited managing director Md Anwar Hossain PTD additional secretary Abul Khair Mohammad Salehuddun and ADB country director Hoe Yun Jeong, signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organizations at a ceremony held at the PPPA conference room in Dhaka on Monday.

The state-of-the-art data centre will be situated on a BTCL-owned site near Chattogram and built to international standards, ensuring high availability and operational scalability.

It will be powered by renewable energy, offering commercial colocation services to public and private enterprises while meeting BTCL’s internal data storage needs.

‘This initiative marks a significant step toward achieving Bangladesh’s digital vision, integrating cutting-edge technology and sustainable practices to support the country’s digital transformation,’ said Hoe Yun Jeong.

The project is expected to promote private investment in the infotech sector, creating opportunities for increased capital mobilization in digital technologies, he added.

A transaction advisory services agreement will soon be signed to implement the project under the PPP model.

ADB’s TAS support will include feasibility assessment, project structuring, tendering, and capacity building for stakeholders, fostering an environment conducive to private investment in the IT sector.