Asian Development Bank (ADB) South Asia Director General Takeo Konishi on Sunday said the ADB has a long history of working in Bangladesh and would be keen to support the interim government to initiate vital structural reforms in the country.
During a meeting with Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus, Konishi said there was room for policy-based lending to Bangladesh as the interim government stepped up efforts to stabilise the economy.
“We’re in a ground zero situation. Everything needs to be done as quickly as possible,” the Chief Adviser told the ADB delegation.
The senior delegation of the Asian Development Bank, led by its South Asia Director General Takeo Konishi, called on Chief Adviser at the State guesthouse Jamuna.
The Chief Adviser said the student-led revolution had given Bangladesh a new opportunity to rebuild the institutions “piece by piece.”
During the meeting, the government’s newly launched financial sector reforms, key economic issues such as digitalisation of the tax data; data transparency, energy, private sector, and investment were discussed.
Chief Adviser’s special envoy on international affairs Lutfey Siddiqi observed that dynamics in the foreign exchange market and its interplay with reserves and remittances are already showing signs of improvement.
“There is a noticeable uplift in confidence and credibility on that front,” Chief Adviser’s press wing quoted Siddiqi as saying.
Senior secretary and the head of SDG affairs Lamiya Morshed, senior adviser of ADB Edimon Ginting, country director designate Hoe Yun Jeong and deputy country director Jiangbo Ning were present in the meeting.
