Dev partners' conditions on loans, grants to Bangladesh found too hard
FE Report | Friday, 18 July 2008
The development partners attach tough policy conditionalities with their loans and grants to Bangladesh and put pressure on their implementation, said a UN report Thursday.
"More than two-thirds of loans and grants (71 per cent) from the IDA (International Development Association) still have sensitive policy reforms attached to them," the report observed quoting the research findings of Eurodad (2007).
Professor Mustafizur Rahman, executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), released the report titled UNCTAD LDC Report 2008: Growth, Poverty and the Terms of development partnership at the CPD office in the city.
The UNCTAD report, however, noted that both the World Bank and the IMF have made major efforts in the last few years to reduce the intrusive and negative effects of policy conditionality.
The UN report noted that the case studies of conditionality in relation to privatisation and liberalisation in Bangladesh revealed a wide range of reactions.
"Some government officials (in Bangladesh) pointed out that the policy agenda did not reflect government priorities and pressure was applied to implement the policies," the UNCTAD report observed.
"Time has come to review the LDCs' relations with the development partners for ensuring country ownership in any development programmes," the CPD executive director said.
Adoption of aid management policies (AMP) and upgrading local development solutions as mechanism to enhance country ownership is necessary, the report observed.
It said that in the past policy conditionality by the development partners was a principal mechanism through which country ownership was undermined.
The proposed AMP should be designed and used to ensure that assistance received is of such a type and is so deployed as to maximise its contribution to the priorities set out in the country's statements of development strategy.
The UNCTAD report expects Bangladesh to graduate from the LDC group to middle-income country in next 17 years from 2008 if it sustains a growth rate between 6.5 per cent and 6.7 per cent.
The CPD executive director however said: "We will be able to accelerate our growth and need not to wait for such a long time to come out of the LDC group."
The UNCTAD report also pointed out that Bangladesh's current moderate economic growth riding mainly on export of low technology manufactured goods like ready-made garment (RMG) might not sustain if export basket is not diversified.
Bangladesh's export of low technology manufactured goods is just reverse to the developed countries' export base where concentration is on high and medium technology.
"More than two-thirds of loans and grants (71 per cent) from the IDA (International Development Association) still have sensitive policy reforms attached to them," the report observed quoting the research findings of Eurodad (2007).
Professor Mustafizur Rahman, executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), released the report titled UNCTAD LDC Report 2008: Growth, Poverty and the Terms of development partnership at the CPD office in the city.
The UNCTAD report, however, noted that both the World Bank and the IMF have made major efforts in the last few years to reduce the intrusive and negative effects of policy conditionality.
The UN report noted that the case studies of conditionality in relation to privatisation and liberalisation in Bangladesh revealed a wide range of reactions.
"Some government officials (in Bangladesh) pointed out that the policy agenda did not reflect government priorities and pressure was applied to implement the policies," the UNCTAD report observed.
"Time has come to review the LDCs' relations with the development partners for ensuring country ownership in any development programmes," the CPD executive director said.
Adoption of aid management policies (AMP) and upgrading local development solutions as mechanism to enhance country ownership is necessary, the report observed.
It said that in the past policy conditionality by the development partners was a principal mechanism through which country ownership was undermined.
The proposed AMP should be designed and used to ensure that assistance received is of such a type and is so deployed as to maximise its contribution to the priorities set out in the country's statements of development strategy.
The UNCTAD report expects Bangladesh to graduate from the LDC group to middle-income country in next 17 years from 2008 if it sustains a growth rate between 6.5 per cent and 6.7 per cent.
The CPD executive director however said: "We will be able to accelerate our growth and need not to wait for such a long time to come out of the LDC group."
The UNCTAD report also pointed out that Bangladesh's current moderate economic growth riding mainly on export of low technology manufactured goods like ready-made garment (RMG) might not sustain if export basket is not diversified.
Bangladesh's export of low technology manufactured goods is just reverse to the developed countries' export base where concentration is on high and medium technology.