IFAD, Bangladesh end loan negotiation for Tk7,214cr project

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the government of Bangladesh have concluded a loan ne-gotiation for financing a Tk 7,214cr programme to promote crop diversification, entrepreneurship, and climate resilience.

The IFAD conducted the negotiation on Wednesday with the Economic Relations Department (ERD) of the Ministry of Fi-nance for the “Program on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship, and Resilience (PART-NER),” co-financed by the World Bank.

On receiving approval from IFAD’s executive board, PARTNER will ensure food and nutrition security for five million people in rural Bangladesh.

On approval, PARTNER will be implemented nationwide by seven departments of the Ministry of Agriculture to bring a ma-jor transformational shift in the agricultural sector through interventions spanning extension, research, infrastructure, and marketing.

Proposed activities include introduction of digital smart cards to provide effective extension services, improved export op-portunities for high value crops, promotion of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), and investments to install improved labor-atory and testing facilities for agricultural products.

The project will seek to improve the sector’s resilience to climate change over the long term by improving irrigation sys-tems and demonstrating climate-smart practices to smallholder farmers.

“This programme will play a pivotal role in rural transformation in Bangladesh, and IFAD looks forward to collaborating with its longstanding partners, the Government of Bangladesh and the World Bank, to successfully implement PARTNER and support the country’s efforts to achieve sustainable and inclusive economic growth,” said Arnoud Hameleers, IFAD Country Director for Bangladesh.

The five-year programme will be financed by loans of $43 million from IFAD and $500 million from WB, and a commitment of $800 million by Bangladesh.