COVID-19 pandemic no setback for Bangladesh's soaring ship industry

Every corner of the Char Kaliganj yard is filled with vessels under repair

Published: November 20, 2020 16:31 AFP and Compiled by Nathaniel Lacsina, Senior Web Editor

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Char Kaliganj, Bangladesh: Work is booming at Bangladesh's largest shipyard - quite literally. It's difficult to hear anything over the cacophony of banging hammers and crackling sparks, proof the industry has withstood the economic shockwaves wrought by the coronavirus pandemic. Image Credit: AFP

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In this nation of 168 million people, much of the low-lying land is accessed via boat. Rivers are Bangladesh's lifeblood, and strong economic growth in recent years has fueled more investments in new and bigger ships. Image Credit: AFP

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Every corner of the Char Kaliganj yard is filled with vessels under repair, and the air is thick with the acrid smell of oil and chemicals. Image Credit: AFP

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"The dockyards were closed in... the coronavirus lockdown. But now business is booming," said worker Abul Kashem, 66, saying he has never seen the yard south of Dhaka busier. Image Credit: AFP

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A dockyard worker makes a propeller of a ship. Image Credit: AFP

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The 15,000 workers sometimes toil seven days a week to meet the demand, said Masud Hossain Palash, who heads the Bangladesh Dockyard and Shipyard Owners Association. Image Credit: AFP

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"Well into the 1980s, these dockyards would only make... one-storey or one-and-a-half storey wooden ferries," Kashem recalled. Now their work includes oil tankers and bulk carriers. Image Credit: AFP

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Passenger ferry ships are seen moored on the Buriganga River in Dhaka. Image Credit: AFP

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The shipyard sector has soared on the back of the strong economy, together with the textile industry which has made Bangladesh the world's second-largest garment exporter. Image Credit: AFP

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Gross domestic product grew by 8.2 percent last year and the hit from the coronavirus pandemic is expected to be less severe than in other developing economies. Image Credit: AFP

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A dockyard worker welds a structure on the bow of a ship. Image Credit: AFP

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Bangladesh's GDP per capita is also expected to surpass that of its giant neighbour India this year, according to the International Monetary Fund. Image Credit: AFP

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A dockyard worker carries maintenance works on the hull of a ship. Image Credit: AFP

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a dockyard worker prepares a mold to make a propeller. Image Credit: AFP

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