Dhaka, Dec 18: The World Bank (WB) will provide Tk 1027.50 crore, (equivalent to $ 150 million) to Bangladesh, aimed at creating jobs for 100 days in the rural areas for the extreme poor during two lean seasons a year. The programme covers one lean season from October to December and another from March to May when rural day labourers are often out of work.

The households, where the head is a manual labourer and which have less than half an acre of land will be eligible for the programme. It is estimated that over 600,000 men and women will benefit from the programme during each lean season.

The disaster management and relief division of food and disaster management ministry will implement the programme from January 2011 to December 2013.

A credit agreement between the government and WB was signed for the “Employment Generation Programme for the Poorest” at the economic relations divisions (ERD) at Sher-e-Banglanagar in the city yesterday, ERD secretary, M. Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan and WB country director Ellen Goldstein signed on behalf of their respective sides at a ceremony held at the ERD. It was attended by senior officials of the ERD and WB.

After the signing ceremony M. Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told reporters  the programme would create two crore person-days of employment over a three year period. “The Government is committed to extend the safety net to protect the poorest and the vulnerable population, while ensuring a more efficient, accountable and transparent system”  Bhuiyan said.

Wages to the day labourers will be paid through formal financial channels to ensure the efficiency and transparency of the system, the ERD secretary observed.

The programme will generate employments for the day labourers, particularly for the vulnerable women, who are often out of work during the lean season, he added.

Despite considerable progress in poverty reduction during the past 20 years, many of the poorest women are still without employment, Bhuiyan said, adding that the programme would ensure that the poorest women make up at least one-third of those employed.

“Our mandate is to reduce poverty, which  requires shared growth, in which the poorest are not left behind” said Ellen Goldstein after signing the agreement and added “The WB will provide funds for the  wage-earners, but will also help ensure that funds are well-targeted to those who are most in need,” she noted.

“Building upon the government's earlier employment generation interventions, the programme will target both the poorest upazilas and the poorest households,” she noted adding that “it will address seasonal poverty by allowing the poorest to have an income, which can be scaled up if the situation demands.”

The credit from the International Development Association (IDA) has 40 years to maturity, including a 10-year grace period, and carries a service charge of 0.75 per cent.

Source: The Independent, Bangladesh/19th Dec 2010

Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited (DBBL) has recently signed a participatory deal with Bangladesh Bank to extend and expand the Re-Financing facility in SME sector. K.S. Tabrez, Managing Director of DBBL and Mr. Shukomol Singh Chowdhury, General Manager of SME and special program’s department, has signed the deal for their own organization.

This deal will cover the projects outside Dhaka and Chittagong metropolitan. These projects may come under re-financing facility only after fulfilling certain conditions and the perimeter of the financing will be from Tk.50,000 to Tk.70,00,000.

Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank Mr. Harunur Rashid Chowdhury, Asst. Managing Director of DBBL Mohammad Mosaddikur Rahman, Chief of SME sector Mohammad Abu Kawsar and many other senior officials from both organizations were present in this program.

Press Release: Prothom Alo/17 Dec 2010        

DHAKA : Bangladesh Bank governor Dr Atiur Rahman on Wednesday asked the banks to fix a focal point while carrying out their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

He gave the directive while addressing a meeting on ‘CSR Presentation’ at Hotel Sheraton in the city.

Management and Resources Development Initiative (MRDI) and Association of Bankers, Bangladesh Limited (ABBL) jointly organized the meeting.

Speaking as chief guest, Dr Atiur said the image of a particular bank would increase significantly if they conduct their CSR properly.

“Employees of such banks then feel proud and its impact contributes a lot in their business,” he said.

The Bangladesh Bank governor, however, mentioned a problem concerning an SRO that makes it obligatory for the recipient to inform the NBR that they have got the CSR benefit from a particular bank. He suggested the NBR to incorporate the donor bank for providing information on the CSR.

As per the existing rule, banks get 10 per cent tax rebate for the money they spend on CSR.

Dr Atiur also suggested the NBR to provide other facilities if they can not give more tax rebate to the banks on their CSR money. — UNB

Source: daily-sun, Bangladesh/15th Dec 2010

Inter-bank call money rate shot up to 62.5 per cent yesterday, which is highest during the present government’s regime, as banks and financial institutions were facing fund shortage.

The call money rate moved up to 50 per cent on Monday.

“The increase in CRR and SLR of commercial banks and a large amount of share selling pressure put extra pressure on money market.” said Managing director of the Eastern Bank Ali Reza Iftekhar on Tuesday.

He also said the major telecom companies’ have withdrawn cash from the commercial banks ahead of the year ending for making their dividend payments and fees to government exchequer.

A fund manager of a commercial bank said that most of the commercial banks were borrowing from call money market ranging from 35-60 per cent while NBFIs borrowed at rates ranging from 40 to 62.5 per cent.

In a bid to tame inflation by squeezing liquidity in money market, the Bangladesh Bank has increased statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) to 19 percent from 18 percent and cash reserve requirement (CRR) to 6 percent from 5 percent.

The banks and NBFIs should increase their SLR and CRR from today (Wednesday) as per a recent directive of the BB.

Bankers said call money rate usually goes up to 20 per cent before the Eid-ul-Azha because of heavy withdrawal of funds by the hide traders. Call money rate increased up to 85-90 per cent in 2005 during the BNP-led four party alliance regimes.

Although the BB injected Tk 11.4 billion into the money market under a special repurchase agreement (Repo) on Tuesday, the fund proved to be inadequate, fund managers said. The total amount of Tk 34.8 billion was transacted in the local call money market on Tuesday.

Source: daily-sun, Bangladesh/15th Dec 2010

Bangladesh Bank has recently finalized their independent pay scale for its employee. According to the new pay scale the Executive Director's scale is thirty four thousand and five hunderd taka (Tk.34,500) and on that s/he will draw a salary of fifty two thousand four hundred and fifty taka (Tk.52,450) whcih was fifty thousand nine hundred and fifty taka (Tk.50,950) before. It has been finalized yesterday afternoon in a Cabinet Secretarie's office in a meeting of the Secretaries of Bangladesh Bank's Independent Pay Scale Finalizing committee. It has been informed that the new pay scale will come in effect after the approval of the Minister Cabinet.

Cabinet Secretary M. Abdul Aziz chaired the meeting where Finance Secretary Dr. Mohammad Tareq, Banking Secertary Shafiqur Rahman Patwary and DG of Bangladesh Bank Murshid Kuli Khan were present. Assistant Director's Pay scale of Bangladesh Bank has beed settled to eleven thousand and five hundered (Tk.11,500) and scale of General Manager and other officers' increased upto thousand taka.

Source: Amar Desh/15 Dec 2010