Dhaka, May 9 -- The Chittagong Customs House (CCH) is set to construct a state-of-the-art office building as part of a broader push to modernise customs operations and streamline clearance activities at the country's main seaport and Shah Amanat International Airport.

The planned 14-storey, environmentally friendly building will be developed at a cost of about Tk 9.0 billion with financing from the World Bank. As part of the project, CCH has initiated the temporary relocation of its operations to the World Trade Centre (WTC) in Agrabad.

To this end, the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) and CCH signed an office space rental agreement on May 5. Under the deal, CCH will lease 156,600 square feet of office space along with...