Bangladesh has the potential to attract significant investment and generate millions of jobs by carrying out key reforms in four promising sectors -- green readymade garments (RMG), housing for the middle class, paint and dyes, and digital financial services, according to a new report by the World Bank Group.
As much as $670 million (around Tk 8,200 crore) from slow-moving World Bank-funded projects will be repurposed, with most of the funds going towards budget support as the government looks to navigate the narrow fiscal space amid a slowing economy.
These two financial agreements will help Bangladesh achieve green growth: WB country director
The high cost of servicing foreign debt has pushed many developing countries to borrow more money from multilateral institutions like the World Bank, stretching their finances
Bangladesh to utilise the fund to speed up reforms, stabilise reserves
He speaks at a discussion organised by the Finance Division in collaboration with the World Bank
The International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings are scheduled to draw more than 10,000 people from finance ministries, central banks and civil society groups to discuss efforts to boost patchy global growth, deal with debt distress and finance the green energy transition
The government is expecting at least $5.65 billion in budget support this fiscal year from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to expedite reforms.
The meetings will take place in between October 21 and October 26
Key among the reforms was the announcement that the IBRD's minimum equity-to-loans ratio will fall to 18 percent from 19 percent, which will generate $30 billion in additional financing
The World Bank (WB) identified law and order, uncertainty surrounding the next general election and weak financial sector as the three major downside risks to Bangladesh’s economy and development.
The share of unemployed tertiary-educated youth within the total unemployed population in Bangladesh increased to 27.8 percent in 2022 from 9.7 percent in 2013 as many struggled to find jobs that match their skills and educational qualifications, according to the latest World Bank (WB) report.
The WB said Bangladesh's economy is expected to grow by only 4 percent due to the uncertain impact of political protests and the ongoing transition in government
The government has identified a dozen slow-paced projects funded by the World Bank, from which up to $1.5 billion will be repurposed and utilised as budget support or in other policy-based reform programmes.
"There is much that low-income economies can -— and must -— do for themselves," the World Bank's deputy chief economist, Ayhan Kose, said in a statement
The loan announced on Monday, which follows an earlier $500 million World Bank loan after the 2022 economic crash
Bangladesh’s banking sector was not well-managed in recent years. Banks mostly gave loans to their owners, rather than to creditworthy entities. Consequently, several banks are now in difficulty.
World Bank (WB) Vice President for South Asia Martin Raiser affirmed the bank’s commitment to support critical reforms to promote inclusive and sustainable growth of Bangladesh
The World Bank (WB) is considering a $2 billion budget support for Bangladesh during the current fiscal year, according to the multilateral lender’s South Asia Region Vice President Martin Raiser
