Bangladesh receives USD 858 Million World Bank Financing to Improve Climate Resilient Agriculture Growth and Road Safety

Bangladesh and the World Bank on Wednesday signed two financing agreements totaling USD 858 million to enhance climate-resilient agricultural growth, food security, and improve road safety.

The agreement was signed by Secretary, Economic Relations Division, Government of Bangladesh Sharifa Khan and World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Abdoulaye Seck on behalf of Bangladesh and the World Bank, respectively in Dhaka.

The USD 500 million Program 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, said a World Bank release.

The USD 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.

The agriculture and rural transformation funding 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.

The Road-safety project will be implemented on two national highways—N4 (Gazipur-Elenga) and N6 (Natore to Nawabganj) of Bangladesh.. It will pilot comprehensive road safety measures, including improved engineering designs, signing and marking, pedestrian facilities, speed enforcement, and emergency care. 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.