The United Nations forecast Wednesday (January 25, 2023) that global economic growth will fall significantly to 1.9% this year as a result of the food and energy crisis sparked by the war in Ukraine, the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, persistently high inflation and the climate emergency. Painting a gloomy and uncertain economic outlook, the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs said the current global economic slowdown “cuts across both developed and developing countries, with many facing risks of recession in 2023.” “A broad-based and severe slowdown of the global economy looms large amid high inflation, aggressive monetary tightening, and heightened uncertainties,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a foreword to the 178-page report. The report said this year's 1.9% economic growth forecast — down from an estimated 3% in 2022 — is one of the lowest growth rates in recent decades. But it projects a moderate pick-up to 2.7% in 2024 if inflation gradually abates and economic headwinds start to subside. Read More: Global economic growth will slow down in 2023, but will pick up in 2024: IMF chief In its annual report earlier this month, the World Bank which lends money to poorer countries for development projects, cut its growth forecast nearly in half, from it previous projection of 3% to just 1.7%. The International Monetary Fund, which provides loans to needy countries, projected in October that global growth would slow from 6% in 2021 to 3.2% in 2022 and 2.7% in 2023. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said at last week’s World Economic Forum in Davos that 2023 will be a difficult year, but stuck by the projection and said “we don’t expect a global recession.” Shantanu Mukherjee, director of the economic analysis and policy division of the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, highlighted the growing income inequality in the world at a news conference launching the report. Between 2019 and 2021, he said, average incomes for the top 10% rose by 1.2% while the incomes of the lowest 40% fell by 0.5%. Read More: Bangladesh-Turkiye Business Forum launched to usher in new era of economic cooperation “The top 10% now earns on average over 42 times what the lowest percentiles” earn, Mukherjee said. According to the U.N. report, this year “growth momentum has weakened in the United States, the European Union and other developed economies, adversely affecting the rest of the world economy.” In the United States, GDP is projected to expand by only 0.4% in 2023 after estimated growth of 1.8% in 2022, the U.N. said. And many European countries are projected to experience “a mild recession" with the war in Ukraine heading into its second year on Feb. 14, high energy costs, and inflation and tighter financial conditions depressing household consumption and investment. The economies in the 27-nation European Union are forecast to grow by just 0.2% in 2023, down from an estimated 3.3% in 2022, the U.N. said. And in the United Kingdom, which left the EU three years ago, GDP is projected to contract by 0.8% in 2023, continuing a recession that began in the second half of 2022, it said. Read More: China’s economic growth falls to second-lowest level in four decades With China’s government abandoning its zero-COVID policy late last year and easing monetary and fiscal policies, the U.N. forecast that its economy, which expanded by only 3% in 2022, will accelerate to 4.8% this year. “But the reopening of the economy is expected to be bumpy,” the U.N. said. ”Growth will likely remain well below the pre-pandemic rate of 6-6.5%.” The U.N. report said Japan’s economy is expected to be among the better-performing among developed countries this year, with GDP forecast to increase by 1.5%, slightly lower than last year’s estimated growth of 1.6%. Across east Asia, the U.N. said economic recovery remains fragile though GDP growth in 2023 is forecast to reach 4.4%, up from 3.2% last year, and stronger than in other regions. Read More: AL govt's ouster a 'must' to tackle political, economic crises In South Asia, the U.N. forecast average GDP growth will slow from 5.6% last year to 4.8% this year as a result of high food and energy prices, “monetary tightening and fiscal vulnerabilities.” But growth in India, which is expected to overtake China this year as the world’s most populous nation, is expected to remain strong at 5.8%, slightly lower than the estimated 6.4% in 2022, “as higher interest rates and a global slowdown weigh on investments and exports,” the U.N. report said. In Western Asia, oil-producing countries are benefiting from high prices and rising output as well as a revival in tourism, the U.N. said. But economies that aren’t oil producers remain weak “given tightening access to international finance and severe fiscal constraints,” and average growth in the region is projected to slow from an estimated 6.4% in 2022 to 3.5% this year. The U.N. said Africa has been hit “by multiple shocks, including weaker demand from key trading partners (especially China and Europe), a sharp increase in energy and food prices, rapidly rising borrowing costs and adverse weather events.” Read More: Burden of Bangladesh’s economic and political stability must be shared One result, it said, is mounting debt-servicing burdens which have forced a growing number of African governments to seek bilateral and multilateral support. The U.N. projected economic growth in Africa to slow from an estimated 4.1% in 2022 to 3.8% this year. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the U.N. said the outlook “remains challenging,” citing labor market prospects, stubbornly high inflation and other issues. It forecast that regional growth will slow to just 1.4% in 2023 from an estimated expansion of 3.8% in 2022. “The region’s largest economies – Argentina, Brazil and Mexico – are expected to grow at very low rates due to tightening financial conditions, weakening exports, and domestic vulnerabilities,” the U.N. said. Read More: Bangladesh considering ‘pros and cons’ of Indo-Pacific Economic Framework: Momen For the world’s least developed countries, the U.N. said growth is projected at 4.4% this year, about the same as last year but significantly below the UN's target of 7% by 2030.

World Bank Managing Director for Operations Axel van Trotsenburg on Tuesday reaffirmed the World Bank’s strong support for Bangladesh to help achieve its vision of upper-middle income status by 2031. He came to Dhaka on Saturday on a three-day visit, marking  the 50 years of partnership between the World Bank and Bangladesh. He said Bangladesh’s development and growth trajectory is an inspiration for many countries, according to a press release. “It has tackled many development challenges in remarkable ways. It has reduced poverty in record time and has played a leading and innovative role in disaster risk management and adaptation to climate change,” said van Trotsenburg. “The World Bank has been a steadfast partner for the past five decades and remains committed to help Bangladesh achieve green and inclusive economic growth and development.” Read more: ‘World Bank should support countries hit hard by Covid-19, Russia-Ukraine war, climate change’ On Monday, van Trotsenburg met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and commended Bangladesh’s role in climate change adaptation and disaster preparedness, and the Prime Minister’s strong leadership as the chair of the Climate Vulnerable Forum during 2020-2022. “Despite being severely affected by climate change, Bangladesh has emerged as a global leader in climate resilience and disaster preparedness by taking a bold and innovative approach reducing cyclone-related deaths more than 100-fold since 1971,” he added. The World Bank helped Bangladesh build and rehabilitate more than 700 km of coastal embankments, 1,000 cyclone shelters that also operate as schools, and 550 km of paved roads that improve access for surrounding villages. Read more: World Bank a key partner of Bangladesh’s economic growth: Finance Minister Today, van Trotsenburg visited a World Bank-financed cyclone shelter that serves as a primary school during normal weather and met with the local communities. He visited the Kutupalong Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar and thanked Bangladesh for its generosity to provide shelter to about 1.1 million displaced Rohingya people. The World Bank has leveraged $590 million in grant financing to help Bangladesh meet to the basic needs of the Rohingya people and the host communities. During the visit, he also met the finance minister, senior government officials, and development partners and discussed Bangladesh’s development priorities. He was accompanied by World Bank Vice President for the South Asia Region, Martin Raiser. Read more: World Bank managing director to arrive in Dhaka Saturday “The World Bank is helping Bangladesh navigate through challenges of global shocks, including the impacts of the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and address barriers to higher growth,” Trotsenburg said. “We are committed to supporting Bangladesh in its goal to become an upper-middle income country by 2031. For this, we will help create more private sector jobs, improve social and economic inclusion, and reduce climate vulnerability.” Over the 50-year partnership, the World Bank has committed about $39 billion in International Development Association (IDA) financing in the form of grants, interest-free loans, and concessional credits to help the country. Currently Bangladesh has the largest ongoing IDA program, and the World Bank is Bangladesh’s largest development partner.

Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (January 23, 2023) urged the World Bank and other international organizations to strengthen their support for countries hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, and climate change. The PM said this when World Bank Managing Director for Operations, Axel van Trotsenburg, paid a courtesy call on her at her office this morning. PM’s speechwriter Md Nazrul Islam briefed reporters after the meeting. Sheikh Hasina said that Bangladesh had achieved an impressive 8-plus percent GDP growth before Covid-19 broke out, but it declined due to the pandemic. When Bangladesh was regaining the growth momentum, it was hit hard again by the Russia-Ukraine war. Read more: World Bank: Recession a looming threat for global economy Developing countries like Bangladesh are dealing with the challenges brought about the economic fallout, including soaring food and fuel prices, she said. The PM focused on her government’s measures and endeavours to fight the climate change, including projects undertaken with financing from Climate Trust Fund, to mitigate the adverse impacts by creating green-belt, afforestation, sustainable housing and livelihood. She said developed countries shares responsibility for climate change but unfortunately, they are not complying with their commitments to assist the climate vulnerable countries. BANGLADESH MADE INCREDIBLE DEVELOPMENT: WB MANAGING DIRECTOR The World Bank Managing Director praised Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for Bangladesh’s incredible development journey under her leadership. The per capita income in Bangladesh was only some US $50 in 1972, which is now US $2824, he added. Read more: World Bank okays $250m for Bangladesh for better environmental management, green investments Talking about the current context, Axel van Trotsenburg said that developing countries like Bangladesh need to create employment opportunities for youths to face the current challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war. Employment generation is also needed for accomplishing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), he added. He said the World Bank has been assisting Bangladesh since 1972 and will continue to stand beside the country. “I’ve come here to strengthen the World Bank’s partnership with Bangladesh,” said the WB senior official. Read More: World Bank a key partner of Bangladesh’s economic growth: Finance Minister About the development of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina said the country has gained fast development in the last 14 years thanks to the continuation of political stability, the government’s tireless efforts to implement its political visions and its desire to work for the people. PM’s International Affairs Adviser Dr Gowher Rizvi, Ambassador-at-Large Mohammd Ziauddin, PM’s Principal Secretary M Tofazzel Hossain Miah, and Finance Senior Secretary Fatima Yasmin were present at the meeting.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Sunday praised the World Bank for its continued support towards Bangladesh’s development. He said Bangladesh's growth has increased by 74 times since 1972, and the World Bank had a role to play behind it. “After independence, the country's GDP growth was only $6.3 billion, which has now increased to $465 billion,” he said. Kamal said this while speaking as the chief guest as the World Bank and Bangladesh celebrated its 50 years of partnership at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC) in the capital on Sunday. Also Read: WB cuts Bangladesh growth target by 0.9 percent to 5.2 percent The Finance Minister also said that Bangladesh is currently the 35th largest economy, and the poverty rate has come down to 20 percent, per capita income increased to $2,824 and average life expectancy increased to 73 years. Also read: World Bank managing director to arrive in Dhaka Saturday Highlighting the future plans, the Finance Minister said, “Our next target will be to turn Bangladesh into an upper-middle income country by 2031, and a Smart Developed Bangladesh in 2041.” World Bank Managing Director (Operation) Axel van Trotsenbur, World Bank South Asian Region Vice President Martin Riser, Economic Relations Division Secretary Sharifa Khan, and World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Abdoulaye Seck, among others, spoke at the function.    

World Bank Managing Director of Operations Axel van Trotsenburg will arrive in Dhaka Saturday on his first official visit to Bangladesh. During his three-day visit, Axel will join a public event in Dhaka on January 22 to mark 50 years of the partnership between Bangladesh and the World Bank Group and celebrate the country's "remarkable" development achievements, said a media statement. "Bangladesh has shown the world what can be done to dramatically reduce poverty through successful innovations in human development, women’s empowerment, and climate adaptation," Axel said. Read more: Bangladesh wants low-interest loan from World Bank amid economic woes "The World Bank is proud of its 50-year partnership with Bangladesh and being part of the country's remarkable development journey. I look forward to my visit and to seeing these achievements firsthand." Axel will meet with the prime minister, finance minister, senior government officials, civil society representatives, and development partners, and visit the World Bank-supported projects. World Bank to provide US$300 million to help Bangladesh’s pandemic responseHe will be accompanied by Martin Raiser, World Bank vice-president for South Asia. Read more: 

The World Bank on Wednesday cut Bangladesh's economic growth (gross domestic product -GDP) forecast for the 2022-23 fiscal year further by 0.9 percent to 5.2 percent, due to a combination of factors including  elevated inflation, energy shortages and tightening of the monetary policy. The GDP growth has been predicted in the World Bank's 'Global Economic Prospects report released on Tuesday night. The forecast is down from 7.2 percent growth in the previous year. The government has set a target of 7.5 percent GDP growth in the current financial year. The World Bank said that the growth of Bangladesh may increase slightly to 6.2 percent in the next financial year. Read more: Bangladesh wants low-interest loan from World Bank amid economic woes According to the report, the economy of Bangladesh is being affected due to the global context. “Bangladesh’s economy is affected by the global situation and the sharp increase in fuel prices in the international market,” it said. As a result, there has been a disruption in power supply to industries and households. Industrial production has been disrupted. The government had to do load-shedding to deal with the situation. Apart from this, buying of cars has been stopped as well as luxury goods have been discouraged, the World Bank report said. Earlier, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) predicted a 6.6 percent GDP growth in Bangladesh in the current fiscal year. The ADB's growth forecast was based largely on a slowdown in domestic consumption demand, a decline in exports and remittances, and a slowdown in the global economy. Read more: Bangladesh wants open, transparent relationship with World Bank: PM

The global economy will come “perilously close” to a recession this year, led by weaker growth in all the world’s top economies — the United States, Europe and China — the World Bank warned on Tuesday. In an annual report, the World Bank, which lends money to poorer countries for development projects, said it had slashed its forecast for global growth this year by nearly half, to just 1.7%, from its previous projection of 3%. If that forecast proves accurate, it would be the third-weakest annual expansion in three decades, behind only the deep recessions that resulted from the 2008 global financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Though the United States might avoid a recession this year — the World Bank predicts the U.S. economy will eke out growth of 0.5% — global weakness will likely pose another headwind for America’s businesses and consumers, on top of high prices and more expensive borrowing rates. The United States also remains vulnerable to further supply chain disruptions if COVID-19 keeps surging or Russia’s war in Ukraine worsens. And Europe, long a major exporter to China, will likely suffer from a weaker Chinese economy. The World Bank report also noted that rising interest rates in developed economies like the United States and Europe will attract investment capital from poorer countries, thereby depriving them of crucial domestic investment. At the same time, the report said, those high interest rates will slow growth in developed countries at a time when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has kept world food prices high. “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has added major new costs,” World Bank President David Malpass said on a call with reporters. “The outlook is particularly devastating for many of the poorest economies where poverty reduction is already ground to a halt and access to electricity, fertilizer, food and capital is likely to remain limited for a prolonged period.” The impact of a global downturn would fall particularly hard on poorer countries in such areas as Saharan Africa, which is home to 60% of the world’s poor. The World Bank predicts per capita income will grow just 1.2% in 2023 and 2024, which is such a tepid pace that poverty rates could rise. Read more: Emerging, developing economies less prepared for downturn than 10 years ago: World Bank “Weakness in growth and business investment will compound the already devastating reversals in education, health, poverty and infrastructure and the increasing demands from climate change,” Malpass said. “Addressing the scale of these challenges will require significantly more resources for development and global public goods.” Along with seeking new financing so it can lend more to poorer countries, Malpass said, the World Bank is, among other things, seeking to improve its lending terms that would increase debt transparency, “especially for the rising share of poor countries that are at high risk of debt distress.” The report follows a similarly gloomy forecast a week earlier from Kristina Georgieva, the head of the International Monetary Fund, the global lending agency. Georgieva estimated on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that one-third of the world will fall into recession this year. “For most of the world economy, this is going to be a tough year, tougher than the year we leave behind,” Georgieva said. “Why? Because the three big economies — U.S., EU, China — are all slowing down simultaneously.” The World Bank projects that the European Union’s economy won’t grow at all next year after having expanded 3.3% in 2022. It foresees China growing 4.3%, nearly a percentage point lower than it had previously forecast and about half the pace that Beijing posted in 2021. The bank expects developing countries to fare better, growing 3.4% this year, the same as in 2022, though still only about half the pace of 2021. It forecasts Brazil’s growth slowing to 0.8% in 2023, down from 3% last year. In Pakistan, it expects the economy to expand just 2% this year, one-third of last year’s pace. Other economists have also issued bleak outlooks, though most of them not quite as dire. Economists at JPMorgan are predicting slow growth this year for advanced economies and the world as a whole, but they don’t expect a global recession. Last month, the bank predicted that slowing inflation will bolster consumers’ ability to spend and power growth in the United States and elsewhere. Read more: World Bank dims outlook for global economy amid Russia war “The global expansion will turn into 2023 bent but not broken,” the JPMorgan report said.

The World Bank on Thursday (December 01, 2022) approved $250 million in financing to help Bangladesh strengthen its environmental management and promote private sector participation in green investment. The Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) Project will support the Department of Environment to strengthen its technical and administrative capacity. The project will also help improve environmental regulations and enforcement to curb pollution and improve environmental quality, according to the World Bank. Read more: Every country is struggling to cope, and Bangladesh is no exception: WB Official Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation will pilot new financing mechanisms to promote green investments in targeted sectors. It will also establish a Green Credit Guarantee Scheme to incentivise the financial sector to support green investments to reduce air pollution. Successful implementation of the project will help Bangladesh tackle key pollution issues, benefitting over 21 million people living in Greater Dhaka and beyond, the World Bank said. "Bangladesh's rapid economic growth and urbanisation have come at a high environmental cost in terms of pollution. Not only that the pollution is impacting our health, but also it is eroding the country’s economic competitiveness," said Dandan Chen, World Bank acting country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan. Read more: WB lauds Bangladesh development under PM Hasina's leadership Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation will strengthen the country's environmental institutions to better control pollution and promote sustainable development, he added. The project will help construct four vehicle inspection centres using a private-public partnership modality to inspect about 46,000 vehicles annually. An e-waste management facility will be set up to process 3,500 metric tons of e-waste annually. Read More: 7.1 million Bangladeshis displaced by climate change in 2022: WHO The project will help reduce over 1 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from targeted sources, according to the World Bank. "In newspapers, we regularly see reports on Dhaka's high level of air pollution. The World Bank estimate shows that in 2019, air pollution and lead exposure are responsible for more than one-fifth of the deaths in Bangladesh, costing about 12 percent of the country's GDP," said Jiang Ru, World Bank senior environment specialist and task team leader for the project. "Strong environmental regulations and strict environmental enforcement will incentivise the private sector to invest in pollution control and green growth and thus help the country to achieve its target of net-zero emissions by 2050." Read More: EU shakes up climate talks with surprise disaster fund offer The project will also set up a first-ever network of 22 continuous surface water quality monitoring stations to start monitoring of water quality of Dhaka rivers and targeted international rivers in real-time. It will also establish continuous water quality monitoring stations to ensure the environmental compliance of selected industrial effluent treatment plants. The credit is from the World Bank's International Development Association, which provides concessional financing, and has a 30-year term with a five-year grace period. Read More: UNICEF wants investment in world's first child-focused climate risk financing solution

To gather inputs from national and international experts for an integrated and efficient Logistics Industry Development Policy and to frame a  holistic system both in terms of infrastructure and service development a workshop on “Formulation of National Logistics Industry Development Policy for Bangladesh: Experience from Global Good Practices”  was organized by the Ministry of Industries (MoI), Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD), and the World Bank Group (WBG) at the InterContinental on November 16-17, 2022 in Dhaka. The workshop aimed to present good global practices in formulating the proposed National Logistics Industry Development Policy and gathering expert opinions from national and international sectoral specialists, stakeholders, public sector representatives, and development partners. In the first session of the closing days on 17 November 2022 titled “Balancing Multimodal Transport System for Logistics Competitiveness” two keynotes were presented by A B M Amin Ullah Nuri, Secretary of Road Transport and Highways Division, and Martha B Lawrence, Global Lead of the Regional Connectivity and Logistics Knowledge Group at the World Bank while Md. Mostafa Kamal, Secretary of the Ministry of Shipping grace the session as chair. Read more: No alternative to synchronised multimodal logistics management system: BUILD The Secretary of RTHD informed that initiatives need to be taken to update and implement the National Integrated Multimodal Transport Policy 2013 by portraying dedicated development strategies for different modes of transportation addressing. WB representative in her keynote requested a comprehensive focus on logistics efficiency, quality of logistics, improvement of the logistics infrastructure, and regional connectivity while formulating the National Logistics Industry Development Policy to develop a balanced multimodal transport system. By considering the improvement of the logistics scenario as one of the most priority issues, the government has taken several mega projects. But, without the full automation of the Customs and NBR procedure, all the initiatives will go into vain. Harmonized coordination among the public, private, and development partners is the single key to reaching the multimodal logistics management system to a global height, pointed out by Md. Mostafa Kamal, Secretary, Ministry of Shipping. The government of India has invested 99,000 crore rupees through the Sagarmala PPD Model Project to ensure port-led economic growth by considering their potential coastal areas, informed by Abul Kasem Khan, Co-chair of LIDWC, BUILD. Policymakers should consider the global good practices and strategies of India, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc. to design the nation’s logistics policy and strategy. Necessary policy reforms need to be ensured by removing the regulatory bottlenecks to attract waited for domestic and foreign investment in the logistics sector. “National Forum for Formulating National Logistics Industry Development Policy” would be formed where LIDWC will provide research assistance with the support of World Bank Group, he added. Md. Nurul Islam Sujan MP, Hon'ble Minister, Ministry of Railways graced the closing session of the workshop as chief guest. There is no alternative to ensure transport cost efficiency without the modern railway system. Ongoing projects of the Ministry of Railways will connect Bangladesh to Trans-Asian Railway Network and that will lead to exploring new export markets with diversified products. To make Bangladesh a multimodal logistics hub of the South Asian region, the Ministry of Railways will extend all possible assistance in a coordinated manner, assured by the Hon’ble Railways Minister. Chair of the closing session, Nihad Kabir, BUILD Chairperson highly appreciated the initiatives of the Ministry of Railways for taking several policy reforms and projects to improve the freight and passenger transportation management system in Bangladesh. Dr Shomik Raj Mehndiratta, Practice Manager, Transport, South Asia, World Bank informed that as the development partner of Bangladesh Government, they have been assisting in the infrastructure development of rail, road, waterways, bay terminal, land port modernization, etc. Now it is high time to focus on the private sector’s demanded regulatory reforms to ensure sustainable development of the logistics scenario in Bangladesh. Martin Holtmann, Country Manager (Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal), IFC, highly appreciated the improvement of the logistics environment of Bangladesh in the last few years by implementing policy reforms and infrastructure projects that will ultimately put huge momentum in GDP and economic growth of the nations by reducing the logistic cost. IFC will be glad to provide all sorts of assistance to formulate a national logistics industry development policy, he added. An outcome report of the workshop will be prepared and presented by BUILD through the upcoming  meeting of the Logistics Infrastructure Development Working Committee at the Prime Minister’s Office very soon when all the speakers of the two-day workshop will be invited to validate the placed recommendations and way forwards to formulate a visionary National Logistics Industry Development Policy of Bangladesh, addressed by Ferdaus Ara Begum, CEO of BUILD as the wrap-up remarks of the workshop. Read more: The Emerging Logistics Tech Startups, Courier, Delivery Services in Bangladesh

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Sunday sought extensive concessional loan from the World Bank to help Bangladesh weather the economic shocks caused by Russia-Ukraine war and the Covid-19 pandemic. Kamal sought the assistance from the International Development Association (IDA), the soft-lending widow of the bank, during a meeting with the visiting World Bank Vice President for the South Asia Region Martin Raiser at Secretariat office, the ministry sources said.   Abdoulaye Seck, WB’s newly designated country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, was also present at the meeting. Read more: Bangladesh's strong growth could be at risk without urgent climate action: World Bank The WB officials arrived in Dhaka on Sunday on a 3-day visit to discuss Bangladesh’s request for a new loan to tide over the current economic woes and economic reforms. The visit takes place close on the heels of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreeing to lend $4.5 billion to Bangladesh as the country strives to stabilize its declining foreign exchange reserves and the balance of payments. During the visit Raiser will also meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other senior government officials. Before the visit Raiser said, “I am glad to be back in Bangladesh and to continue discussing with the government the important reforms that can help the country stay on the resilient and inclusive growth path and create opportunities for the people,” The finance minister thanked the World Bank for working on a Technical Assistance project named “Beautification of Dhaka” to ensure environmental restoration and navigability of rivers around Dhaka city and to enhance the beauty of Dhaka. Kamal also discussed the progress of various projects under implementation with World Bank loan assistance. Read more: World Bank Vice President Martin Raiser arrives Saturday Bangladesh has received $1.0 billion in budget support from 2019 to April 2022. It is expected that another $500 million in budget support will be available in the current financial year. Green, Resilience, Inclusive Development (GRID) DPC is expected to get 500 million in the next 2 fiscal years, he said. A loan proposal of $6.15 billion is in the pipeline for the period 2023-2025. Kamal termed the World Bank as one of the important development partners of Bangladesh adding that since 1972, Bangladesh has received $37 billion in loan and grant assistance from the World Bank. “Of which $26.6 billion have been remitted. We have paid $6.36 billion in interest and principal so far,” he added. Fatima Yasmin, Senior Secretary of Finance ministry, Sharifa Khan, Secretary of the Economic Relations Division, Guangze Chen, Regional Director, and Dandan Chen, Acting Country Director of World Bank, were present at the meeting.