$150m ADB fund for Bangladesh's battle against corruption

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The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is extending a financial assistance package that will better equip the Bangladesh government in its fight against corruption and enable it to establish a system of good governance that will pave the way for more rapid and inclusive economic growth, reports UNB.
ADB is providing a $150 million loan to be disbursed in three tranches over a period of four years for the good governance programme of Bangladesh.
A release from Manila Tuesday said ADB was also extending a $1.5 million grant for a technical assistance programme that would enhance the capability of concerned agencies in implementing policy reforms and effectively manage the good governance programme.
Denmark's Human Rights and Good Governance Programme is providing a $1 million grant, while the Bangladesh government is extending $500,000 to complete the financing for the technical assistance.
"Corruption is a telling indicator of poor governance in developing countries, and this has been in evidence in Bangladesh as well over the years," said Gambhir Bhatta, senior governance specialist of ADB’s South Asia Department.
Surveys conducted by organisations inside and outside the country have highlighted this problem, including that corruption adversely impacts not only the economy at the macro level but also individuals and households at the micro level, particularly those in the low-income brackets.
A large part of the problem in governance in Bangladesh has to do with the low level of internal accountability and transparency in the public sector. In the absence of checks and balances, decisions based on adequate consensus tend not to be the norm.
At the moment, there is no programme in the country targeting corruption through a broad and comprehensive approach. The good governance programme fills that void.
"The current government has taken a strong stand on developing major reforms to address the problem of corruption. The good governance programme is in line with the government's priorities on good governance and contributes directly to desired outcomes in this sector," said Bhatta.
The programme seeks to strengthen the ongoing consensus building on good governance, integrity and anticorruption reforms; support judicial reforms with a focus on the performance, transparency and accountability of the judiciary, particularly on its role in the anticorruption agenda; strengthen the role and reach of the government's Anticorruption Commission; and bring good governance and anticorruption initiatives into the mainstream within selected sector level agencies to enhance their effectiveness.
The result will be a set of long-term policy reforms in good governance, particularly those related to instituting good practices in combating corruption, specifically at the sector agency level.
The loan will also help the government formulate and implement a country-specific anticorruption vision and strategy.