Bangladesh gets $858m World Bank loan for climate resilient agri, road safety

Bangladesh and the World Bank yesterday signed two financing agreements totalling $858 million to enhance climate-resilient agricultural growth, food security, and improve road safety.

The credits are from the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA) and have a 30-year term, including a five-year grace period.

The $500 million Programme on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship, and Resilience (PARTNER) will help transform the agriculture sector by promoting crop diversification, food safety, and climate resilience across agri-food systems of Bangladesh.

The programme will support sustainable and nutritious food production through greater efficiency in input use, good agricultural practices, and the promotion of stress-tolerant and nutrient-dense varieties.

It will help increase entrepreneurship and access to services by expanding access to digital agricultural services tools, improved food safety processes, and increased female and youth entrepreneurship. It will also help modernise institutions and policies through improved data management, increased research and development activities, and partnerships with global agricultural research institutions and with the private sector.

"Bangladesh has made remarkable development and economic growth since independence.  New frontiers of challenges, like increasing climate change impacts, now call for urgent actions. The World Bank is committed to helping Bangladesh overcome barriers to sustainable and inclusive green growth," said Abdoulaye Seck, World Bank country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.

"These two projects will be important to help the country remain on a sustainable growth path through boosting climate-resilient agricultural productivity and enhancing the income of hundreds and thousands of farmers as well as protect the people and the economy from the loss caused by untimely deaths, disabilities, and injuries resulting from road crashes," he added.

The $358 million Road Safety Project – which is the first dedicated road safety project in South Asia supported by the World Bank – will help the country improve road safety and reduce deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes in selected high-risk highways and district roads.

In two national highways – N4 (Gazipur-Elenga) and N6 (Natore to Nawabganj) – the project will pilot comprehensive road safety measures, including improved engineering designs, signing and marking, pedestrian facilities, speed enforcement, and emergency care.

It will help modernise the capacity of the Traffic Police and highway patrol to manage speeding and prevent risky road user behaviour.

To improve post-crash care, it will set up an ambulance service via a toll-free number and upgraded emergency care services in selected district hospitals, and Upazila Health Complexes along the two national highway corridors.

"These two projects will contribute to the country's vision of achieving upper-middle income status by 2031," said Sharifa Khan, secretary, Economic Relations Division, Government of Bangladesh.

"Our National Agriculture Policy places high priority on ensuring nutrition, food security, and climate resilient agriculture and the new Road Transport Act places a substantial focus on road safety. By ensuring food security, empowering farmers, creating opportunities for entrepreneurship as well as improving road safety management and minimising tragic loss of human lives, these two projects will contribute to sustainable economic growth," she added.

The agreement was signed by Sharifa Khan and Abdoulaye Seck on behalf of Bangladesh and the World Bank, respectively.

Bangladesh currently has the largest ongoing IDA programme totalling $16.3 billion. The World Bank was among the first development partners to support Bangladesh and has committed about $40 billion in grants, interest-free and concessional credits to the country since its independence.