World Bank approves development operation for Bangladesh job sector

On Thursday, The World Bank approved a $250 million development policy operation in an attempt to help the Bangladeshi government increase the number, quality, and pay scale of jobs. This comes after the disproportionate nature of the country’s economic growth and corresponding employment generation.
Qimiao Fan, Director of World Bank Country for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal said, “Bangladesh has made remarkable progress in accelerating growth and reducing poverty, but the rate of job creation has not kept up with economic growth. Creating more and better jobs is a prerequisite for the country to achieve its vision of upper-middle income status.”
According to The World Bank, the objective of Programmatic Jobs Development Policy Credit is to help Bangladesh establish a stronger policy and institutional structure. This would act instrumental in overcoming the predominant hurdles and consequently, generate better quality jobs for youth and women.
“This will require the economy to create jobs for the 2.2 million youths entering the labor force each year, while attracting more women into the labor market. This program supports reforms to stimulate trade and private sector investment, strengthen social protection for workers and help the vulnerable population access jobs,” added Fan.
The program is expected to target multiple age groups of employment sector in an individual manner. For instance, enhancement of childcare services would promote the essence of participation from mothers while simultaneously encouraging other women. Similarly, skill development and work protection will be the primary targets of the program. The expected ways to achieve this include improvements in labor law, ease of doing business, pensions, and trade facilities.
Thomas Farole, World Bank Lead Economist and Task Team Leader commented, ““This program seeks to increase investments in labor-intensive activities, improve the quality of jobs, strengthen resilience to shocks, and ensure that women, youth, and migrants access job opportunities.”
According to the World Bank, Bangladesh’s IDA program is the largest with $12.2 billion. The credit from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) has to be paid within 30 years, including a half-decade grace.