Govt expects $1.3b budget support from dev partners in FY25
Last fiscal’s final budget support was $2.03 billion
The newly formed interim government expects to secure at least $1.3 billion in budgetary support from various development partners during the current financial year to address the ongoing economic crisis.
Officials said several multilateral and bilateral development partners have given initial assurances. The Finance Division and the Economic Relations Division (ERD) are actively working to secure these funds.
A senior ERD official said talks are ongoing for $500 million from the World Bank, $400 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), $200 million from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), $100 million from South Korea, and another $100 million from the Opec Fund for International Development (OFID).
"Development partners are ready to provide budget support, but the final amount will depend on the economic situation," the official added.
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He mentioned that at the start of the last fiscal 2023-24, the initial target for budget support was $1.2 billion. But considering the reserve situation, the final budget support was increased to $2.03 billion.
According to ERD data, Bangladesh till 30 June 2024 received $13.12 billion in budget support from development partners.
Budget support increased significantly after the pandemic, mainly to purchase vaccines and aid in economic recovery. Beiseds, budget support increased in response to the economic challenges brought on by the Ukraine-Russia war.
Bangladesh received $1.769 billion in FY23, $2.597 billion in FY22, $1.09 billion in FY21, $1 billion in FY20, and $251 million in FY19, ERD data shows.
WB, ADB, AIIB, Korea
ERD officials said under the second "Bangladesh Green and Climate Resilient Development Credit" programme, $500 million in budget support will be received from the World Bank for the current fiscal year.
This funding will support various environmental reform programmes involving multiple ministries, including environment and climate change, local government, planning commission, health services, finance, electricity, and energy.
Also, discussions are underway with ADB about budget support under the "Strengthening Economic Structure for LDC Graduation" programme. To secure this support, the government must advance logistics development, such as enhancing sea container transport.
The AIIB, OFID and Korea are also expected to provide budget support to Bangladesh on similar terms as ADB.
