ADB to provide $100 million for job creation

The Bangladesh government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $100 million agreement on Thursday (October 9) to provide medium- and long-term credit opportunities for cottage, micro, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs outside the Dhaka and Chittagong metropolitan areas.

ERD Secretary Md. Shahriar Quader Siddiqui and ADB Country Director Hoey Yun Jeong signed the agreement on behalf of Bangladesh at a ceremony organized by the Economic Relations Division (ERD) in Dhaka.

ADB Country Director Hoey Yun Jeong said, “As Bangladesh strives to diversify and transform its economy, developing the CMSME sector is crucial to accelerating growth, reducing poverty, income inequality and regional disparities.”

He said, “This project will ensure access to long-term capital, especially for rural CMSMEs run by women. At the same time, it will help women entrepreneurs to run their enterprises more effectively by enhancing their skills and enhance the capacity of financial institutions to provide credit and necessary support to the CMSME sector.

The ‘Second Small and Medium Enterprise Development Project (Phase-2)’ aims to create at least 15,000 jobs by 2030, an ADB press release said. The project will accelerate economic growth and help reduce poverty by developing CMSMEs in rural areas. Because access to banks and their branches in these areas is less than in metropolitan areas.

The project will also help increase the number and size of commercially viable CMSMEs and increase employment in the sector. It will complement ADB’s non-sovereign operations and build the capacity of project financial institutions. It will also help integrate climate risk management into the CMSME sector, produce environmentally friendly products, and expand new markets.

Under the project, technical assistance of $950,000 will be provided to Bangladesh Bank and participating financial institutions to enhance their institutional capacity. This will facilitate entrepreneurs' access to bank credit and financial services and enhance the capacity of CMSMEs, including women entrepreneurs.

In addition, the project will support the development of training modules, organizing training workshops on CMSMEs, formulating action plans on green finance and value chain-based finance, developing technical standards, and implementing pilot projects.

ADB is a leading multilateral development bank that is effective in ensuring inclusive, resilient, and sustainable growth in Asia and the Pacific. It works with member countries and partners to address complex challenges and contributes to improving quality of life, building quality infrastructure, and protecting the environment through innovative financial mechanisms and strategic partnerships. Established in 1966, ADB currently has 69 member countries, of which 50 are in Asia.