Bangladesh, World Bank ink $2.25bn loan agreement for 5 projects

The World Bank and Bangladesh have signed a loan agreement of $2.25 billion to develop various sectors of the South Asian emerging economy, including regional trade and connectivity, disaster preparedness and environmental management.

Sharifa Khan, secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) and Abdoulaye Seck, Country Director, World Bank in Bangladesh signed the financing agreements on behalf of Bangladesh and the World Bank respectively, said a  press release issued by the Ministry of Finance.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and World Bank President David Malpass were present during the exchanges of the financing agreement between the two sides.

This loan agreement comprises five projects:

(1) Accelerating transport and trade connectivity in Eastern South Asia (ACCESS) – Bangladesh Phase-1 Project worth $753.45 million.
(2) The $500 million Resilient Infrastructure Building Project (RIVER) for resilience, adaptation and vulnerability reduction that will be the first major investment to support Bangladesh's Delta Plan 2100. It will help improve disaster preparedness against inland flooding.
(3) The $500 million First Bangladesh Green and Climate Resilient Development (GCRD) project is the first such credit that will help the country's transition to resilient development.
(4) The $250 million Sustainable Microenterprise and Resilient Transformation (SMART) project aims to help transform the microenterprise sector into a more dynamic, less polluting, resource efficient and climate resilient growth sector.
(5) The $250 million Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) project to help strengthen environmental management and promote private sector participation in green investment.