UN ready to help B\'desh deepen digital finances

The United Nations is interested to deepen its engagement in Bangladesh's digital financing looking at new areas in support of the government's vision, officials said.
The UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), which has been providing financing to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Bangladesh since 1970, expressed its interest to extend cooperation to other sectors.
The UNCDF has proposed visit of a high-level delegation in Bangladesh to discuss the issues and find possible areas of cooperation with government officials.
During the last seven to 10 years, the UNCDF has shifted its area of work to local government financing, particularly fiscal decentralisation and supplementing existing sources of capital assistance through providing grants and loans.
Recently, Bangladesh got membership at Better Than Cash Alliance (BTCA), a partnership of governments, companies, and international organisations that accelerates the transition from cash to digital payments, which has encouraged UNCDF to forge new types of collaboration.
Bangladesh ambassador to Thailand recently told the banking division secretary in Dhaka that the UN body wants to help the country accelerate digital pathways to increase financial inclusion through a digital economy. The office of UNCDF's regional coordinator for Asia is based in Thailand.
The UN body wants to help strengthen financing for clean energy, climate change adaptation and mitigation, strengthening access to finance infrastructure for local government and municipalities.
The UNCDF also intends to support women's entrepreneurship and access to domestic finance through women's economic empowerment.
The UN agency has collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in its digital financing project work in Bangladesh. A delegation of Gates Foundation may also visit Bangladesh to discuss future engagement plans of the Foundation in the area of digital financing and financial inclusion.
The Gates Foundation is working with the Bangladesh Bank in the areas of policy, regulation and digital financing methods.
"We stand ready to deepen and expand the collaboration through cooperation with ministries in Bangladesh and also with offices of the Bangladesh Permanent Representatives of the UN in New York and UNESCAP in Bangkok," acting UNCDF regional coordinator Feisal Hussain recently wrote to Bangladesh envoy Saida Muna Tasneem.
The UNCDF plans to conduct a series of studies that will collectively provide the knowledge base for a concerted effort to address systemic challenges within digital financial services and identify opportunities to fast-track uptake of digital financial services in Bangladesh.
It wants to develop a series of educational and awareness raising campaigns in an effort to increase knowledge and usage of digital technology and digital financing services among the poor.
The UN body also wants to undertake a series of technical advisory actions, including capacity building focused on a range of ministries to support integration of digital financial services.
It also plans to contribute to the development of the national financial inclusion strategy by bringing global best practices and adapting them to a local evidence and context.
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