Dhaka attends consultation meet on proposed AIIB

Rezaul Karim | Published: September 27, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00

The process of Bangladesh joining the proposed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as a founder-member has got under way, officials said.
A three-day multilateral consultation meeting began in Beijing on Friday on the founding of the bank, with representation from Dhaka. Â
Additional Secretary of ERD Mohammad Asif-uz-Zaman left Dhaka on September 24 for attending the Beijing consultation, official sources said Friday.Â Â
A meeting of the ministry of finance (MoF) held on September 17 with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in the chair at his secretariat office decided in principle to make the move to this effect.
Dr Atiur Rahman, Governor of Bangladesh Bank (BB), the senior secretary of the Finance Division, Secretary of the Bank and Financial Institutions Division (BFID) and the secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) were among others present at the meeting. Â
Meeting sources said decision was taken to start the process aimed at signing the memorandum of understanding (MoU) to join the AIIB as a founder-member.
Earlier, China had formally invited Bangladesh to join its initiative to establish the AIIB as a founder-member.
"China has invited Bangladesh to join the preparatory works for establishment of the AIIB as a founding- member, and work together with the country to build the AIIB into a platform of mutual benefits," a Chinese embassy official in Dhaka wrote last July to the Ministries of Finance and Foreign Affairs here.
The letter also carried the message that the prospective founder-members of the AIIB will sign an inter-governmental MoU for establishing the bank this autumn.
AMA Muhith was quoted as telling the meeting, "We can start the process aiming to join the proposed AIIB as a founder-member."
Explaining the option he said, "Decision to set up the proposed regional Bank is aimed at making investment in the infrastructure sector like the World Bank (WB) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB)."
The finance minister further said that Dhaka is also interested to join the New Development Bank (NDB) the world's five emerging economies---Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS)-have agreed to establish with its headquarters in Shanghai.
"It will be more beneficial for Bangladesh if the country joins the AIIB as a founder-member," the BB governor said during the discussion at the meeting.
He also said getting investment facility for the country's infrastructure sectors will be made easier as its member. Besides, Bangladesh will be able to enjoy some special opportunities as a founder-member.
The AIIB, with US$100 billion as its start-up capital, is scheduled to make its debut by the end of this year, aiming to finance key infrastructure projects in Asian countries, sources said.
China announced that it alone would contribute $50 billion for the formation of the bank and the other member-countries will provide the rest, they said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Keqiang during their earlier visits to South East Asian countries formally announced their initiative of establishing the AIIB in order to support infrastructure construction and promote regional development and cooperation among the Asian nations. Â
Â Â Â rezamumu@gmail.com