devinitorg/iati-policy-markers huggingface dataset:
Public-Private Infrastructure Development Facility (PPIDF) The Public-Private Infrastructure Development Facility (PPIDF) includes and $82 million loan from ADB's ordinary capital resources (OCR), an $83 million equivalent loan from ADB's special funds resources and a technical assistance grant of $500,000 for capacity building and supporting project implementation.
Component A will use ADB's OCR funds of $82 million to provide financing to the Government of Bangladesh for relending to the Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL) to finance private sector-sponsored large infrastructure subprojects with a subproject size of more than $30 million.
Component B will provide ADF support of $50 million equivalent to the Government for relending in local currency to IDCOL to finance small and medium-sized infrastructure subprojects primarily located in rural and semiurban areas, especially in the energy sector.
Component C will provide ADB funding of $33 million equivalent for the purpose of promoting renewable energy systems in Bangladesh. IDCOL will finance the set-up of renewable energy systems such as solar home systems and/or biomass installations through a microfinance-based, direct sales program.
Padma Multipurpose Bridge Design Project (Supplementary Loan) The ongoing Padma Multipurpose Bridge Design Project is to develop the detailed design for the Padma bridge, which is one of the Bangladesh Government's top priority projects. The original TA loan for the Project was approved in Dec 2007 for Special Drawing Rights 11,179,000 ($17.6m equivalent). Apart from the initial delay to engage the design consultants, project implementation has been smooth with strong support from the Government and other development partners.

The ensuing investment project to construct the Padma bridge is included in the 2009-2011 country operations business plan for Bangladesh as a firm loan. Four major potential cofinanciers (ADB, IsDB, JICA, and WB) are involved in reviewing the Project's progress and developing the ensuing project.

The Project's cost overrun is mainly due to underestimation of the cost of the design consultant's inputs, including remuneration and cost of field surveys and studies.

The initial cost of the design consultant, arrived at by strictly following ADB's quality-based selection, was $2.3m higher than the estimate.

Since its mobilization in Feb 2009, the design consultant has carried out, as part of its terms of reference, a fresh assessment of the requirements for field surveys and studies to develop the detailed design. The original budget allocation under the design consultant's contract for these cost items is now considered to be grossly insufficient with a fund shortage of about $6.4m. Though the cost increase is significant, these surveys and studies are essential for preparing an engineering design with due consideration to economy, effectiveness, constructability, functionality, ease in operation and maintenance, and sustainability of the ensuing project.

The cost overrun, under the design consultant's contract, has been ongoing since January 2009. The Government requests that ADB continue to finance the cost overrun for the following reasons: (i) switching funding sources of an ongoing contract would disrupt the design consultant's activities, and may result in significant delay in completion of the detailed design; (ii) the Government does not have readily available funding to accommodate the identified cost increase; and (iii) without external financiers' involvement, lack of proper guidance in the appointment of specialized subconsultants to carry out the surveys and studies and the use of funds by the subconsultants could compromise the quality of these surveys and studies.
Greater Dhaka Sustainable Urban Transport Project - Additional Financing The project will contribute to develop a sustainable urban transport system (UTS) in GCC, which forms part of north Greater Dhaka, through the delivery of a 20-kilometer (km) bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor. This pilot project provides a holistic solution for integrated urban mobility, bearing a demonstration effect as no modern mass transit system exists in Bangladesh yet.
COVID-19: Response Emergency Assistance Project The Project will support the Government of Bangladesh (the government) in addressing immediate and urgent needs for financial, logistical, and systemic support to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Project will support the procurement of equipment and supplies, the upgrading of health and testing facilities, and build system and community capacities for surveillance, prevention, and response to COVID-19.
COVID-19: Supporting Post-COVID-19 Small-Scale Employment Creation With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, government's efforts took on increased urgency and many short-term measures were put in place to provide immediate support for social protection and job protection. While most of the social protection measures were through direct cash or in-kind transfer and expansion of welfare programs, the support for industry and job protection will mostly be carried out through credit lines and liquidity support through financial sector. The total amount of credit lines, refinance programs, and credit protection schemes announced, has reached Tk1 trillion. But the retrenchment of the financial sector and capacity constraints present a challenge to deliver the funds timely and efficiently especially to reach certain highly vulnerable sectors.
Improving Urban Governance and Infrastructure Program The proposed results-based lending for the Improving Urban Governance and Infrastructure Program (the program) is built upon the successes and lessons learned from previous Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement Projects (Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement Project, Second Urban Governance and Infrastructure Project, Third Urban Governance and Infrastructure Project, and Additional Financing to Third Urban Governance and Infrastructure Project). The program supports improving urban governance and services in 88 pourashavas (municipalities) of Bangladesh from fiscal year (FY) 2024 to FY 2028, benefiting 7.6 million people. ﾠThe program willﾠ(i) strengthen institutional capacity for inclusive municipalﾠgovernance; andﾠ(ii) improve municipal infrastructure regarding quality, access, resilience, and gender responsiveness.ﾠThe program will supportﾠthe Government of Bangladesh in achieving integrated and sustainable urban development to improve the livability of pourashavas. It is aligned with the Country Partnership Strategy, 2021-2025, which promotes a culture of responsiveness and accountability as part of good urban governance. The program is aligned with ADB's Strategy 2030, supporting key operational priorities related to addressing remaining poverty and reducing inequalities; accelerating progress in gender equality; making cities more livable, and strengthening governance and institutional capacity. The program is also expected to be aligned with the Paris Alignment Agreement. The overall investment needs for the government's program expenditures for pourashavas development is estimated at $1.8 billion, of which about $0.7 billion would be supported through the proposed program. Bangladesh's urban policies and plans are aligned with its international commitments.
Second Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement (Sector) Project The Second Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement (Sector) Project (the Project) supports the improvement of urban governance and of infrastructure and service delivery in pourashavas (secondary towns). The Project adopts the performance-based allocation of investment funds as an incentive mechanism for governance reform. Performance criteria are defined in six key areas of urban governance: (i) citizen awareness and participation, (ii) urban planning, (iii) womens participation, (iv) integration of the urban poor, (v) financial accountability and sustainability, and (vi) administrative transparency. Investment funds will be utilized to improve municipal transport, drainage, solid waste management, water supply, sanitation, municipal facilities, and basic services in slums. The project design is based on the lessons from the ongoing Urban Governance and Infrastructure Improvement (Sector) Project (UGIIP-1).
Strengthening Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited Project The proposed project is a financial intermediation loan in an amount up to $50 million from Asian Development Bank (ADB)'s ordinary capital resources to Ministry of Finance for relending to Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited (BIFFL), for onlending to PPP infrastructure subprojects screened by Bangladesh Public Private Partnership (PPP) Authority and advised by ADB Office of Public Private Partnership (OPPP).  The associated transaction technical assistance (TRTA) will strengthen BIFFL's institutional capacity and support project implementation. The objective of the proposed project is to facilitate long-term infrastructure finance and sustain infrastructure development in Bangladesh.
Agribusiness Development The Project is aimed at reducing poverty in Bangladesh through agribusiness growth that generates income and employment in rural areas. The outcome of the Project will be expanded activities of rural enterprises engaged in commercial agriculture production, input supply, marketing, processing, and transportation.  These will generate employment in rural and peri-urban areas, increase the value added of nontraditional crops and commodities, and increase rural incomes.

Specifically, the Project will target small-scale agribusinesses that do not have the wherewithal to mobilize the financing they require to expand, or the capacity to open up new downstream markets. This will be undertaken with the assistance of NGOs experienced in providing credit and support to rural enterprises at the grassroots level. The rural poor will be the ultimate beneficiaries of all of these actions through enhanced employment opportunities, income generation, and agricultural production.

The Project outputs include (i) establishment, expansion, and successful operation of agribusinesses by small-scale entrepreneurs; (ii) strengthened capacity of participating NGOs and wholesale banks in agribusiness lending; (iii) strengthened capacity of agribusiness associations in policy dialogue and agribusiness information and technology dissemination; and (iv) improved policy environment enabling private sector participation.
Skills Development Project The Project has four outputs: (i) enhanced relevance of and access to technical and vocational education and training (TVET) programs, (ii) improved capacity for good quality TVET delivery, (iii) delivery of relevant skills training, and (iv) project management.

To enhance the relevance of TVET, the Project will support the (i) establishment of partnerships with industry; (ii) development of competency and training standards; (iii) evelopment of curricula, teacher guides, learning materials and assessment tools; and (iv) capacity development in external competency assessment. With a view to improving the capacity to deliver good quality training programs, the Project will assist in (i) providing in-service training to government and nongovernment TVET teachers; (ii) revitalizing two public TVET teacher training institutions; (iii) strengthening the capacity for short training programs in selected public and private training institutions; and (iv) strengthening the
capacity of the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) for planning, research, and social marketing.

To increase the delivery of relevant skills training, the Project will support (i) the delivery of skills training (market-responsive skills training) needed in the labor market, and (ii) the delivery of skills training in poor communities.
Khulna Water Supply Project The impact of the project will be sustainable improvement of urban environment in Khulna. The outcome of the project will be expanded access to water supply with improved service standard in Khulna. The outputs of the project will be (i) expanded capacity of water supply system with sustainable water sources, (ii) strengthened corporate management system, and (iii) improved project management capacity.
Bangladesh Power System Enhancement and Efficiency Improvement Project The proposed project will enhance the coverage and improve the reliability and efficiency of the transmission and distribution network, to facilitate better utilization of the expanding power generation capacity to meet the growth in electricity demand across the country
Flood and Riverbank Erosion Risk Management Investment Program - Project 1 ADB is assisting the Government of Bangladesh to improve the livelihoods of people in the country's most flood and erosion prone areas along the Jamuna, Ganges and Padma rivers. The Flood and Riverbank Erosion Risk Management Investment Program is in line with the plans of the Government of Bangladesh to strategically manage flood and riverbank erosion risks along the country's main rivers to reduce damages to people's assets and to lessen constraint to economic development. It will finance the construction of riverbank revetments to protect vulnerable riverbanks and therefore assets and flood embankments behind the riverbanks from progressive erosion. Flood embankments will also be rehabilitated or constructed. The investment program will include training for communities to develop their capacity to operate and maintain the structures and to manage flood and erosion risks at the community level. The community capacity development will be combined with livelihood improvement supports. The investment program will include the construction of about 50 kilometers (km) of riverbank protection structures; rehabilitation and construction of 89 km of flood embankments with climate-resilient design; and a piloting of innovative riverbank protection structures. The investment program will also support the national-level institutional capacity strengthening for more strategic planning and implementation of flood and erosion risk management. This will improve the lives of the people in the affected areas.
Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway Public-Private Partnership Design Project The TA Loan is to develop the design for the Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway ready for financing under a private-public partnership scheme and assist the Roads and Highways Department in engaging contractors. The TA Loan will assist the Government in updating the feasibility study, preparing the detailed engineering documents, procurement and PPP-financing scheme for the Dhaka-Chittagong Expressway Project.
South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation Dhaka-Northwest Corridor Road Project, Phase 2 (Tranche 3) On 24 October 2017, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Board of Directors approved a multitranche financing facility (MFF) of $1,200 million to the People's Republic of Bangladesh for the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Dhaka-Northwest Corridor Road Project, Phase 2. The executing agency is the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) of the Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges. The project improves the road connectivity of the Dhaka-Northwest international trade corridor. Three outputs will be delivered: (i) Elenga-Hatikamrul-Rangpur Road of the Dhaka-Northwest international trade corridor upgraded; (ii) RHD's institutional capacity in road operation and management enhanced; and (iii) road safety and gender-responsive features strengthened, and the cost overrun financed for the Joydeypur-Chandra-Tangail-Elenga Road of the Dhaka-Northwest international trade corridor under the SASEC Road Connectivity Project. The availability period of the MFF is up to 31 August 2027. The MFF comprises four tranches, finances slices of long-term contract packages. Each tranche finances slices of a group of contracts per the indicative tranche schedule, and the amount for each tranche is requested based on disbursement progress and projection. Preconstruction activities such as land acquisition, resettlement, and procurement were implemented in the first 3 years of the project. Tranche 1, comprising a regular ordinary capital resources (OCR) loan of $250 million and a concessional OCR loan of $50 million, financed the first slice of the project and was closed in Jan 2023. Tranche 2 comprising a regular ordinary capital resources (OCR) loan of $398.38 million was approved in Dec 2019 and is ongoing; finances the second slice of the project. The government requested $300 million loan for tranche 3, same as the original amount requested during project inception.
Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project Readiness Financing (Line 5, Southern Route) The proposed PRF will support the preparation and high project readiness of the ensuing loan. The PRF will prepare the detailed feasibility study, engineering design, and procurement document; and provide assistance in procurement-related processes. 

The ensuing project of MRT Line 5 (Southern Route) will comprise a total length of about 17.4 km between Gabtoli and Dasherkandi stations.  The congested central area of Dhaka requires 12.8 km of underground section with 12 stations, while the remaining section will be elevated with 4 stations. The ensuing project will be considered after completing the engineering design supported by the PRF.
Secondary Education Sector Investment Program - Tranche 1 The proposed investment program will support the government's reform of secondary education (grades 6-12) into a system that builds the foundation for a skilled labor force and prepares youths to meet the requirements of a rapidly developing economy. It will support advanced teaching and learning programs that use information and communication technology (ICT), as well as prevocational and vocational programs, teacher development, and examination reforms. It will promote gender-equitable and pro-poor stipends for students. It will help establish more decentralized and efficient allocation and use of resources, as well as strengthen sector performance monitoring. The investment program will build upon the ongoing Secondary Education Sector Development Program  and the Second Teaching Quality Improvement Project.  It will further benefit from the experience of the Third Primary Education Development Project, which uses disbursement-linked indicators (DLIs).  The investment program links disbursement to the achievement of key results. It will further support the transition to a sector-wide approach.
Improvement of Capital Market and Insurance Governance Technical Assistance Loan The Project will improve good governance practices in the capital market and the insurance sector.
Transport Connectivity Improvement Preparatory Facility The project readiness financing (PRF) loan is proposed to advance project preparation of priority transport projects by financing feasibility study, detailed design and other preparatory works. Ensuing projects will be formed from a list of identified necessary investments which the Government has agreed, subject to agreed project selection criteria.
Climate-Resilient Livelihood Improvement and Watershed Management in Chittagong Hill Tracts Sector Project The proposed project will improve climate resilient livelihoods and access to basic services for rural communities living in the three hill districts of Bandarban, Khagrachari and Rangamati of the Chattogram Hill Tracts (CHT) region, a remote and relatively under-developed region of Bangladesh. The project will adopt a holistic approach of addressing deficiencies in financial, human, physical, natural, and social capital that are needed to support sustainable and resilient community development. Specifically, the project will (i) develop small-scale community infrastructure; (ii) improve watershed protection and management; (iii) improve agricultural production, processing, and marketing; (iv) improve non-farm skills amongst rural youth and strengthen capacity of CHT institutions; and (v) improve rural road connectivity. The project will explicitly support climate resilient outcomes and build long-term resilience of the institutional systems that it supports, in one of the most socially disadvantaged and highly vulnerable regions of Bangladesh.

The project is aligned with the government's 8FYP, which aims to reduce poverty in lagging regions through investments in rural roads, rural water supply and sanitation, irrigation and agriculture, rural enterprise development, community forest management, promoting sustainable development, and minimizing climate related challenges. The project also supports the strengthening of CHT institutions, empowerment of women, inclusion of ethnic communities in development, and partnerships with civil society organizations. The project compliments the programs of several other development partners engaged in the CHT. The project is also aligned with the objectives of: (i) the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100; and (ii) the Nationally Determined Contributions 2021 of Bangladesh. Within ADB, the project aligns with: (i) several operational priorities of ADB's Strategy 2030; and (ii) the Country Partnership Strategy for Bangladesh 2021-2025, specifically, strategic objective 2: promote green growth and climate resilience; and strategic objective 3: strengthening human capital and social protection.
Emergency Assistance Project The project will support the Government of Bangladesh in addressing the immediate and urgent needs of the displaced persons from Myanmar in Coxsbazar District, as identified by the United Nations (UN) in its Joint Response Plan (JRP) (displaced persons).  The project will mainly support the improvement of water supply and sanitation, disaster risk management, sustainable energy supply, and access roads.
Strengthening Social Resilience Program (Subprogram 2) The proposed subprogram supports the Government of Bangladesh in strengthening the social resilience of Bangladesh's people. Aligned with the government's medium-term reform agenda on social protection, the program aims to accelerate reforms in increasing the coverage and efficiency of the protection, improving the financial inclusion of disadvantaged people, and strengthening the response to diversified protection needs.
Skills for Employment Investment Program - Tranche 1 The investment program will support the Government of Bangladesh's reforms in skills development, anchored in the National Skills Development Policy (NSDP), 2011. It will support large-scale private sector involvement and public-private partnership, which is critical to meet existing and future labor market needs and to reduce the skills gap. This in turn is crucial for Bangladesh to move away from the 'low-skill, low-wage equilibriumm' to a 'higher skill, higher wage virtuous cycle' to become a middle income country. The program will help the government to scale-up skilling of new entrants and up-skilling of existing workers to contribute to higher growth of priority sectors. The program will strengthen skills development in Bangladesh and support transition to a sector-wide approach (SWAp) by establishing a unified funding system and enhancing overall coordination of the currently fragmented system.
Irrigation Management Improvement Project - Additional Financing The proposed additional financing will cover cost overruns of the ongoing project. The ongoing project is modernizing the Muhuri Irrigation Project in Feni district in Chattogram division and strengthening the capacity of Bangladesh to improve national practices on sustainable management, operation, and maintenance (MOM) of its large-scale irrigation schemes. The project is critical from a climate change adaptation perspective as it significantly increases flood risk protection for productive land and assures irrigation water supply during lean periods. While introducing innovative infrastructure modernization, it also aims to foster private sector participation in water sector by transferring MOM responsibilities from government departments to private operators.