Alongside macroeconomic stability, energy security, and export diversification, one structural issue demands early and decisive attention: the country’s logistics inefficiencies. Few opportunities offer clearer, faster, and more strategic returns than correcting the transport imbalance surrounding Narayanganj. Located along the Shitalakkhya River and adjacent to Dhaka, Narayanganj has long been one of Bangladesh’s most important industrial centres. Widely recognised as the country’s knitwear and textile heartland, the district hosts thousands of factories and supporting industries directly or indirectly engaged in import- and export-oriented activities. Together, they form a critical pillar of Bangladesh’s export economy, supplying global markets while depending on timely access to raw materials and reliable outbound logistics.
Yet despite this strategic role, Narayanganj remains overwhelmingly dependent on road-based freight transport dependence that has become economically inefficient, environmentally unsustainable, and strategically risky.
The government’s recent decision to permit the development of an inland container facility in Narayanganj therefore merits serious attention from policymakers and political leaders. If treated merely as another inland container depot, the opportunity will be underutilised. If planned with vision, however, it can evolve into a trimodal inland port integrating rail, inland waterways and road transport, fundamentally reshaping freight movement in the Dhaka region and strengthening Bangladesh’s trade competitiveness.
Today, more than 95 per cent of containerised cargo moving between Chattogram Port and inland destinations relies on roads. For Narayanganj’s industries, this translates into chronic congestion around Dhaka, unpredictable transit times, high transport costs and rising environmental damage. For knitwear and textile manufacturers, where production cycles are tight and shipment deadlines non-negotiable, these inefficiencies directly affect buyer confidence, delivery reliability and profit margins. This is not a short-term problem that can be solved by widening roads or managing traffic better. It reflects a structural imbalance in Bangladesh’s logistics system, where road transport carries an unsustainably high share of long-haul freight that should be moving by rail and water.
Narayanganj is uniquely positioned to help correct this imbalance. Few locations in Bangladesh combine such a large captive cargo base with river frontage, existing railway alignments and proximity to major economic zones such as Adamjee EPZ, City Group Economic Zone and the Araihazar Japanese Economic Zone. These advantages make Narayanganj a natural candidate for a modern inland port rather than a conventional road-fed depot.
A realistic development strategy would follow a phased approach. In the initial stage, the focus should be on reviving the existing railway alignment and operating the facility as a rail-based inland container depot. Even modest, scheduled container train services would bring immediate gains: greater reliability, predictable transit times and reduced dependence on congested urban roads.
For export-oriented industries, rail connectivity also enables customs clearance closer to factories, easing pressure on Chattogram Port and reducing dwell time. The inclusion of empty container depots at Narayanganj would directly address one of the garment sector’s most persistent operational challenges, the availability and repositioning of empty containers.
As volumes increase and confidence builds, the terminal can expand to include inland waterway transport. Narayanganj’s location on the Shitalakkhya River makes it well suited for container barge operations, particularly for imports, empties and non-time-critical cargo. Inland water transport is significantly cheaper per container-kilometre than road haulage and produces far lower emissions, an increasingly important consideration as global buyers scrutinise supply-chain sustainability.
Despite policy recognition, Bangladesh’s inland waterways remain underutilised. Integrating river transport into the Narayanganj facility would finally translate long-standing plans into operational reality, while easing congestion around Dhaka.
The relevance of Narayanganj becomes even clearer when viewed alongside national rail development plans. The proposed Dhaka-Chattogram chord line via Narayanganj, highlighted in the Railway Master Plan, could significantly improve freight efficiency by reducing dependence on congested Dhaka routes. If designed with freight priorities in mind, Narayanganj could emerge as a key aggregation point for export containers moving to port.
This would also strengthen Bangladesh’s readiness for expanded regional rail connectivity, particularly as the Padma Bridge Rail Link enhances cross-border trade potential. For any incoming government seeking quick, high-impact economic wins, integrating Narayanganj into the national rail-freight strategy offers a rare opportunity where industrial demand already exists and infrastructure benefits are immediate.
From a policy standpoint, a trimodal inland port at Narayanganj aligns closely with the National Logistics Policy, which calls for multimodal transport, reduced logistics costs and environmentally sustainable freight movement. Shifting cargo from road to rail and waterways directly supports national commitments on congestion reduction, emission control and export competitiveness.
The scale and complexity of the project also make it well suited for public–private partnership models. Under a landlord or hybrid framework, the government can provide land, connectivity and regulatory support, while private operators contribute investment, operational expertise and modern systems. Coordinated oversight, possibly through the National Logistics Development Coordination Committee (NLDCC), would be essential to align transport agencies, customs authorities and private stakeholders.
Beyond logistics efficiency, the economic impact of a Narayanganj inland port would be substantial. Construction and operation would generate employment, while improved connectivity would attract further industrial investment. More importantly, by reducing logistics uncertainty and cost, the facility would help protect the competitiveness of an industrial cluster that underpins Bangladesh’s export earnings.
As the government defines its priorities, logistics reform should not remain a secondary technical issue – it is a foundation for industrial growth, export resilience and long-term competitiveness. By placing the Narayanganj trimodal inland port within its core infrastructure agenda, the new administration can send a clear signal: that Bangladesh is ready to modernise its freight system, reduce structural inefficiencies and strengthen the trade foundations on which its economic future depends.
The writer is a Port Shipping & Logistics Strategist | Adjunct Faculty, Bangladesh Maritime University
