Economic and Trade Advisor Salehuddin Ahmed said that the World Bank will provide a one-time grant of 250 million dollars (about 3000 crore taka) to Bangladesh to overcome various climate-related losses, including the recent floods.
The economic advisor told reporters after meeting with the organization’s Vice President Martin Reiser on the sidelines of the ongoing annual meeting at the headquarters of the World Bank in Washington, DC, on Wednesday local time.
On the same day, the economic advisor also met with US State Department officials and later Indian Finance Minister Nirlama Shitram. In the meeting, they discussed trade and commerce, bilateral relations, and relations with the interim government.
In addition, the former governor of Bangladesh Bank is meeting with various countries and development partners on the sidelines by attending the annual conference of the World Bank Group.
From late August to September, the Feni-Noakhali region suffered the worst floods in Bangladesh’s history. The floods caused by this have made life miserable in the southeastern and northern parts of the country. The World Bank is standing by the interim government to restore rural living standards to normal.
After the meeting, the financial advisor told reporters that their expectations from development partners are a little higher for the interim government at this conference. They have assured us of support for all types of reform activities. Therefore, the World Bank will provide a one-time grant of 250 million or 250 million dollars to Bangladesh to deal with emergency risks.
Government representatives believe that this support from donor groups, including loans on the one hand and financial assistance or grants on the other, will create a new stage in Bangladesh’s economic development.
Meanwhile, the World Bank has thanked Bangladesh for being able to repay its outstanding loans. As a result of repaying the installments of about 2.5 billion dollars of loans without taking a single penny from the reserves, instability with the dollar is also decreasing. Import-related inflation will also decrease in the coming days. The country’s economy is gradually returning to normal after overcoming the dollar crisis.
