ADB prioritises Bangladesh’s sustainable development

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is committed to prioritise its assistance towards Bangladesh for graduation from LDC, climate change and sustainable development goals, it reaffirmed recently.

The ADB would help the country to achieve its goal of becoming an upper middle-income country by 2031 and a high-income country by 2041, said ADB Vice-President Shixin Chen.

ADB Vice-President made this commitment during his meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on May 9 in Dhaka, said an ADB press release.

“In alliance with the government’s policies, ADB’s support for Bangladesh will focus on boosting competitiveness, employment, and private sector development; promoting green growth and climate resilience; and strengthening human capital and social protection," Chen stated.

He also reaffirmed ADB’s commitment to supporting rapid recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as inclusive, resilient, and green development in Bangladesh.

Chen also commended on the overall management of the economy and swift actions to support strong economic recovery from the pandemic while finance minister and ADB Governor AHM Mustafa Kamal was also present.

He emphasized the importance of continued prudent macroeconomic management, in the backdrop of heightened external risks.

Chen also met Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujon and discussed reforms to improve operational efficiency of the railways, faster project implementation, and ensure high project readiness for potential future projects, including the Dhaka–Cumilla chord line project currently being prepared with ADB’s support.

Chen met with the Planning Minister MA Mannan and assured ADB’s continued support for the implementation of Delta Plan 2100, education, health, energy, railway development, and blue ocean economy.

During his 6-day visit to Bangladesh from 8 May, Chen also held discussions with other senior officials, development partners, and representatives from the private sector.

He also visited the ADB-assisted South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Chattogram–Cox’s Bazar Railway Project,

Second Chattogram Hill Tracts Rural Development Project, Power System Efficiency Improvement Project, and Power System Expansion and Efficiency Improvement Investment Programme, and interacted with project beneficiaries.