Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Tuesday said that the World Bank has offered Bangladesh a US$ 25-30 million IDA credit to help repatriation of the Bangladeshi nationals staying in the troubled Lybia.

“The World Bank has offered support of US$ 25-30 million as an additional IDA which is not in our programme. They are also willing to pay if additional amount is required,” he said while talking to the reporters after a delegation of the World Bank, led by its country director Ellen Goldstein, met him at his ERD office.

The Finance Minister said that the World Bank fund will be spent to fly back Bangladeshis living in troubled Lybia, looking after them and rehabilitating them.

He said that the World Bank will not provide the budgetary support in the current year but it will extend its assistance in the next year.

Muhith informed that he had also discussed with the World Bank delegation regarding the overall programme of the World Bank, about the IDA allocations so that they were available within this year.

Asked about the World Bank’s stance on Grameen Bank, he quoted the WB saying that it is not a problem for them.

World Bank country director Ellen Goldstein said that they would go for retroactive financing for the repatriation of Bangladeshis so that the government can extend finance immediately to International Organisation of Migration (IOM).

She said that the WB offer is a usual IDA credit which has concessional element with less than one percent interest, 40 years of repayment and 10 years grace period featuring extremely high grant element.

Asked about the total amount of offer, she said,” We are not sure yet. But, looking somewhere in between US$20 to 30 million,”

She also hoped that the amount will be sufficient enough to make the financing gap to bring back 30,000 Bangladeshis.

Earlier, a delegation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) met the Finance Minister especially. They offered the government US$ 1 billion under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF), sources present at the meeting said.

The Finance Minister said that the IMF has showed concerns over the exchange rate of currency. Commenting on US$ one billion ECF credit, the minister said that the negotiation on the proposal is almost at final stage.

The IMF delegation after returning to Washington will place the proposal before the Board.

On IMF’s view on the stock market, he said that stock market is not their headache, but their headache is exposure of the banks.

The IMF suggested for an efficient regulatory regime of the stock market, the Finance Minister said adding the reforms of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is undergoing.

Bangladesh Bank governor Dr. Atiur Rahman, finance division secretary Dr. Mohammad Tareque, ERD secretary Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan and deputy governor Ziaul Hasan Sidiqui were present.

News: Daily Sun/ Bangladesh/ Mar-16-2011