IFAD President lauds Bangladesh for its highest performing portfolio

Alvaro Lario, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialised UN Agency based in Rome, has lauded Bangladesh for its highest-performing portfolio in disbursement and utilisation of resources for the rural people with best practices in some areas.

He highlighted Bangladesh's remarkable achievements in food production, climate-smart agriculture, and the inclusion of women and youth in rural economic activities while praising Bangladesh's impressive capacity to implement programmes and projects effectively.

He shared his deep appreciation during a ceremony on Wednesday (7 February), where Md Monirul Islam, the ambassador of Bangladesh to Italy, presented his credentials as the Permanent Representative to IFAD.

In response, Ambassador Monirul Islam thanked the IFAD President for accepting his credentials and acknowledging the special relationship between Bangladesh and IFAD, spanning over 45 years as one of IFAD's earliest partner countries.

The ambassador underscored the President's extensive expertise and knowledge of working in IFAD and other reputed international organisations which is highly effective in materialising IFAD's mandate in the development of rural areas and marginalised people around the globe.

While describing the "development journey" of Bangladesh under the charismatic leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the ambassador briefed him about the splendid performance of Bangladesh in the agriculture sector which received global recognition.

The event, held at IFAD Headquarters, concluded with both Bangladesh and IFAD reaffirming their commitment to collaborate closely, with a focus on inclusive development, to eradicate poverty, and hunger and improve rural livelihoods in the future.

Among those present were Md Al Amin, alternate permanent representative to IFAD, Aysha Akter, first secretary (Political), and Md Ashfaqur Rahman, first secretary (Political) of the Bangladesh Embassy in Rome. President Lario was accompanied by senior officials from IFAD.