The allegation that an organisation owned by two Bangladeshis received 29 million dollars from the USAID is not true, the ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement Monday following probe findings.
The USAID has financed a $29-million project titled 'Strengthening Political Landscape in Bangladesh' which was implemented recently, the ministry said, adding that President Donald Trump has disclosed some information about the project causing confusion among the public.
According to the investigation carried out by the ministry, Democracy International, an organisation registered in the USA, was selected by USAID for the implementation of the project.
The selection was made during the first term of the Trump presidency through competitive bidding participated by many international organisations,the ministry statements says.
The project started after the signing of an agreement in 2017 and later its tenure was extended and the fund was disbursed in phases.
It was a five-year project and primary budget was 14 million dollars. The USAID was the project manager and both the USAID and the UK government's lending arm DFID jointly financed the budget.
The DFID committed 10 million dollars for the project.
The main objective of the project was to strengthen harmony and peaceful existence among political parties through reducing political violence, increasing the capacity of the political parties, developing the practices of internal democracy in the political parties and to encourage the grooming of representative leadership.
Under this project the DI also carried out a survey in Bangladesh, the ministry mentions.
"It may be mentioned that the USAID projects were implemented through following the guidelines of the US government's financial-management policies. And the fiscal audit was maintained strictly in the implementation of the project," the ministry says to dispel any confusion.
The ministry of the foreign affairs in its investigation found that the Democracy International started implementing the project during the first term of Donald Trump's presidency so the allegation that the project was implemented by an organisation owned by two Bangladeshis is not true, says the rebuttal.
In fact, such projects are being implemented through a bilateral Development Objective Assistance Agreement between the USA and Bangladesh and individuals cannot play any role in such cases, the ministry argues.
mirmostafiz@yahoo.com
