DHAKA, May 25, 2025 (BSS) - A financing Agreement was signed today between the government of Bangladesh and the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group involving $270 million loan to implement the 'Bangladesh Sustainable Recovery, Emergency Preparedness and Response Project (B-STRONG)'. 

Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiky, Secretary, Economic Relations Division and Gayle Martin, Acting Country Director of the World Bank, Dhaka signed the financing agreement on behalf of their respective sides.

The project has five components. The project will be implemented by the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) under Ministry of Water Resources; Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) under the Ministry of Agriculture; Department of Disaster Management (DDM) under the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief; Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) under the Local Government Division and Social Development Foundation (SDF) under Financial Institutions Division. 

The implementation period of this project is from July 2025 to December 2030, said a press release.

The main objective of the project is recovery and reconstruction of the flood-affected roads and dams during flood of August 2024 and rehabilitation of farmers. 

The project would also ensure resilience building, reducing future flood risks, supporting agriculture and economic development.

The loan is repayable in 30 years with a grace period of five years. The service charge is 0.75% and the interest charge is 1.25% per annum on the loan withdrawal balance. 

The commitment fee is up to 0.50%. But, the World Bank has been waiving commitment fees for a long time.

The World Bank is the largest multilateral development partner of Bangladesh. The World Bank has committed over $43.50 billion for Bangladesh since its independence which indicates the direction for deepening cooperation between Bangladesh and the World Bank. 

Currently, the World Bank is financing $13.10 billion for 47 ongoing projects that cover different sectors, including economic and social development, institutional reforms, infrastructure development and energy sector development.