World Bank Approves $1.1 Billion Emergency Support for Bangladesh

The World Bank has approved $1.1 billion in emergency support for Bangladesh under two separate projects to help ensure food security, sustain agricultural production and address volatility in global food, fertiliser and energy markets, according to a press release issued from Washington on Saturday, Bangladesh time.

The World Bank said the support comes against a backdrop of rising food, fertiliser and energy prices linked to the conflict in the Middle East, as well as the government’s limited fiscal capacity. The funding will be used to maintain agricultural production, ensure food security and support affected people and businesses during the crisis.

Jean Pesme, World Bank Division Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, said the conflict in the Middle East had pushed up food, fertiliser and energy prices, creating major pressure on Bangladesh’s economy. The worst affected, he said, were small farmers and poor and vulnerable groups. The support, he added, would help secure fertiliser supplies needed for rice production while protecting household livelihoods and jobs.

The World Bank said $300 million will be provided under the Emergency Support for Food Security project. The funding will finance fertiliser imports needed for the 2026 aman season and the 2026-27 boro season.

More than 85% of the fertiliser used in Bangladesh is imported, the World Bank said. The project will support the import of 600,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser, half of it urea, helping small farmers continue rice production on about 1.4 million hectares of land.

Souleymane Coulibaly, Task Team Leader for the project and the World Bank’s Lead Economist, said about 90% of the country’s total rice output is produced during the aman and boro seasons. Nearly half of Bangladesh’s population is linked to the agriculture sector, he said, warning that disruptions to fertiliser supplies could negatively affect not only food security but also employment and poverty conditions.

A further $713 million will be provided under the Contingent Emergency Response project. The money will be rapidly disbursed for cash assistance to affected families, livelihood recovery programmes and support for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

The financing will also be used for imports of energy and fuel to keep essential services running, including food, medicine, medical supplies, electricity and water supply.

Leslie Jean Yu Cordero, the World Bank’s Lead Disaster Risk Management Specialist and Task Team Leader for the project, said Bangladesh would be able to access funds quickly through the reallocation of unspent resources from existing projects. That, Cordero said, would enable rapid steps to protect people, businesses and jobs during the crisis.