The World Bank said on Saturday it approved $250 million loan to the government while more in pipeline from other lenders, laying importance mostly on transparency, accountability and public service delivery.
The WB loan will facilitate the implementation of the 鈥楽trengthening institutions for transparency and accountability鈥� project until 2030 to modernise public service delivery at the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, National Board of Revenue, Planning Division, Bangladesh Public Procurement Authority, and the Office of聽 the Comptroller and Auditor General.
In a press release issued on the day, the World Bank also said that the loan was approved ahead of the proposed budget support worth $500 million that was expected to be discussed in its board meeting later this month.
It hoped that the $500 million support would help ensure transparency and accountability in domestic revenue mobilisation, banking sector, data production and dissemination, public investment management and procurement, audit and accountability, and the delivery of social programmes.
The 鈥楽trengthening institutions for transparency and accountability鈥� project would supplement the proposed budget support, according to the release.
The approval of the $250 million loan by the WB on Saturday came ahead of the board meeting of the International Monetary Fund scheduled for June 23.
The IMF board meeting will decide on the disbursement of the combined fourth and fifth tranches under the $4.7 billion loan programme going on since 2023.
Bangladesh received $2.3 billion in three tranches until June 2024 under the loan programme initiated by the Awami League government before being ousted on August 5, 2024 amid a mass uprising.
Finance ministry officials calculated that the country had received $1.2 billion in budget support in the outgoing financial year of 2024鈥�25 expiring on June 30.
This includes $500 million from the WB under the 鈥楽econd Bangladesh green and climate resilient development policy credit鈥� signed in December 2024, $600 million from the Asian Development Bank in May under the 鈥楽trengthening economic management and governance (Sub-Programme-1), and $100 million from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries und in April.
Officials also said that the proposed $500 million budget support from the WB and $418 million Development Policy Loan from Japan and a $300 million loan from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank were currently in pipeline.
They noted that the original projection on availability of budget support in the outgoing FY2024鈥�25 was $2.6 billion.
The WB in its press release said that the investment under the 鈥楽trengthening institutions for transparency and accountability鈥� project would leverage digitisation of business processes to help improve transparency so that public institutions become better capable of serving an emerging economy.
This project will help modernise tax administration and increase tax compliance, thereby improving much-needed revenue mobilisation and fiscal sustainability. It will also help improve the efficiency and accountability of public spending, ensuring that resources are utilised effectively for the benefit of all citizens. It will develop second generation of electronic government procurement (e-GP) and broaden its scope, according to the WB press release.
