Take steps to reduce rural-urban gap

Says finance adviser

November 19, 2024 00:00:00

Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed inaugurated the second phase of the 'Rural and Peri-Urban Housing Finance Project' of Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation (BHBFC) as the chief guest at a hotel in Dhaka on Monday. Presided over by A.S.M. Abdul Halim, Chairman of BHBFC's Board of Directors, the event was attended by Mohammad Nassis bin Sulaiman, Regional Manager of IsDB; Dr. Khairuzzaman Mozumder, Secretary of the Finance Division; Nazma Mobarek, Secretary of the Financial Institutions Division; and Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky, Secretary of the Economic Relations Division. BHBFC's Managing Director Md Abdul Mannan delivered the welcome address.

Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed on Monday stressed the need to bridge the rural-urban divide in order to address the growing trend of migration towards cities and metropolitan areas.

"Take initiatives to ensure balanced development of the country by increasing civic facilities in villages like in the cities and towns," he urged the authorities concerned, reports BSS.

The finance adviser was addressing the opening ceremony and startup workshop of the 2nd Phase of Rural and Peri-Urban Housing Finance Project of the Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation (BHBFC) held at a city hotel.

This Shariah-based housing investment project is funded by the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), an international development partner. The first phase of the project was completed in October, 2022 after its launching back in the fiscal year 2018-19.

The adviser thanked the BHBFC and Islamic development Bank (IsDB) authorities for taking the initiatives to build houses in the rural and peri-urban areas.

He also expressed the hope that other institutions would also take such initiatives like the BHBFC.

This opening ceremony marked the start of the second phase of the project. The BHBFC received a financial assistance of 270.57 million Euros (equivalent to Tk 31.71 billion) for this project under an agreement signed between the government of Bangladesh and IsDB at Jeddah in Saudi Arabia on April 29 this year under the supervision of the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance.

Of the total, an amount equivalent to 67 million Euros has already been released in favour of BHBFC. The 2nd phase of the five-year BHBFC project will be completed in the fiscal year 2028-29.

Former Cabinet Secretary and Chairman of BHBFC Board of Directors ASM Abdul Halim presided over the event while Regional Manager of IsDB Muhammad Nasir Bin Sulaiman, Finance Division Secretary Dr. Khairuzzaman Mozumder, Secretary of Financial Institutions Division Nazma Mobarek and Secretary of Economic Relations Division Shahriar Kader Siddiky were present as special guests.

Managing Director of BHBFC Md Abdul Mannan delivered the welcome address.

BHBFC Shariah Supervisory Committee President Prof. Dr. Md. Abdus Samad, Economic Infrastructure and Operations Team Leader of IsDB Abu Sandy Bokairi and senior officials of the Ministry of Finance, Bangladesh Bank and BHBFC were also present, among others.