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মঙ্গলবার, ৬ অক্টোবর ২০২৬
২০ আশ্বিন ১৪৩৩
২০ আশ্বিন ১৪৩৩
Monday, 5th October 2026
World Bank’s IDA Provides $300m Loan to Bangladesh for Food Security
05 October 2026 23:10 PM
NEWS DESK
The International Development Association (IDA), the concessional lending arm of the World Bank, will provide Bangladesh with a $300 million loan to implement the Emergency Support for Food Security Project.
To this end, the Bangladesh government and the World Bank’s IDA signed a financing agreement on Monday for 219.2 million Special Drawing Rights (SDR), equivalent to approximately $300 million.
According to a press release issued by the Economic Relations Division (ERD), the project will be implemented from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027.
ERD Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky and Jean Pesme, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides.
The Finance Division, Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), and Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) will jointly implement the project.
The project aims primarily to strengthen food security in Bangladesh by ensuring the availability of fertiliser at affordable prices, particularly for small and marginal farmers during the planting season.
Under the terms of the agreement, the loan will carry an annual interest rate of 1.5 percent on the amount withdrawn. A commitment fee of up to 0.50 percent per year may be charged on the undisbursed amount. However, the World Bank has been waiving this fee for Bangladesh for a long period, and the waiver has also been granted for the current fiscal year.
The loan will be repayable over 25 years, including a five-year grace period.
The World Bank is one of Bangladesh’s major multilateral development partners. The new financing is expected to further strengthen cooperation between Bangladesh and the World Bank. Currently, World Bank-funded programmes in Bangladesh cover a wide range of areas, including economic and social development, institutional reforms, infrastructure development and the energy sector.
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