World Bank approves $1.25b financing for Bangladesh

The World Bank (WB) yesterday approved a $1.25 billion financing in three new projects for Bangladesh for green and resilient growth, said the multilateral lender today.

Of the projects, the WB will provide $500 million for a project termed Program on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship, and Resilience (PARTNER).

The project will help promote diversification, food safety, entrepreneurship, and climate resilience in the agri-food system, it said.

Another $500 million will come as First Green and Climate Resilient Development Credit which will help the country's transition to green and climate-resilient development, it said in a statement.

The international organisation approved $250 million for a project on microenterprise to help transform the micro-enterprise sector into a more dynamic, less-polluting, resource-efficient, and climate-resilient growth sector, said the WB.

With these three projects approved, the International Development Association's (IDA's) total ongoing program in Bangladesh stands at $16.3 billion.

The World Bank Board also discussed a new country partnership framework (CPF) for the years 2023-2027 for Bangladesh to support the country to achieve upper-middle-income country status by 2031 by helping the country address key barriers to higher and sustainable growth

It will help develop a diversified and competitive private sector to create more and better jobs; promote socio economic inclusion to expand opportunities for all; and address climate and environmental vulnerabilities.

These three outcomes are key priorities for Bangladesh's growth aspirations.

"This Country Partnership Framework builds on five decades of strong partnership between the World Bank Group and Bangladesh," said World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Abdoulaye Seck.

"As Bangladesh aims to be more prosperous, it will need stronger institutions and policies to serve the needs of an upper-middle-income country. This CPF will support the government's reform programs to deliver jobs and support inclusion and resilience."

To prepare the CPF, the World Bank Group held extensive countrywide and online consultations with key stakeholder groups, including the government, the private sector, civil society, think tanks, academia, media, and other development partners, it said.

"Bangladesh has an ambitious goal – to achieve upper middle income status within a short period and that too in face of the daunting challenges of climate change,' said Junaid Kamal Ahmad, vice president of operations The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a member of the World Bank Group.

"Access to private capital and global financial markets will increasingly be needed to achieve this goal."