IMF says ready to assist Bangladesh in achieving dev, reform goals
The IMF will send a mission in October to review progress on meeting loan conditions before disbursing the fourth tranche in December
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has assured Bangladesh that it stands ready to assist in achieving its development and reform goals.
Krishna Srinivasan, director of the Asia and Pacific Department of the multilateral lender, made the statement in a letter sent to the interim government's Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed on 19 August.
To address the foreign exchange reserve crisis, the government of the deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina entered into a $4.7 billion loan package with the IMF, under which the Washington-based lender has already disbursed the third instalment to Bangladesh.
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The IMF will send a mission in October to review progress on meeting loan conditions before disbursing the fourth tranche in December.
The interim government, led by Dr Muhammad Yunus, now seeks to increase the size of the loan. It is requesting an additional $3 billion to raise the total debt to $7.7 billion. The Bangladesh Bank is reportedly working on this.
"Within the context of the ongoing IMF-supported programme approved by the IMF board of directors in January 2023, we have worked closely with the ministry of finance to help advance Bangladesh's reform agenda, particularly in the areas of domestic revenue mobilisation, expenditure rationalisation, and climate change, to foster inclusive and green growth," Krishna Srinivasan writes to the finance adviser.
"We look forward to continuing and strengthening this partnership in the future," the IMF added.
Expressing shock at the deaths and injuries during the student-people uprising that toppled the Hasina government on 5 August, the IMF wrote to the finance adviser, "Your breadth of experience and perspective, including your position as the former Governor of Bangladesh Bank, will be invaluable during this critical period in Bangladesh."
Bangladesh failed to fulfil the condition of maintaining net foreign exchange reserves for the release of the third instalment. Following the government's request, the lender granted a concession.
