Bangladesh to get $12.4m grant for fourth Primary Education Development Programme

Bangladesh will receive a grant of $12.40 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for the Fourth Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP-4).

In this regard, a grant agreement was signed recently between the government and ADB. 

Sharifa Khan, Secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD), and Edimon Ginting, ADB Country Director for Bangladesh Resident Mission, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides, reports BSS citing an ERD press release.

The grant, provided by the Education Above All (EAA) Foundation Qatar Fund, will be administered through ADB to support the development of an efficient, inclusive, and equitable primary education system, ensuring effective and relevant child-friendly learning for all children from pre-primary to grade 5.

The Ministry of Primary and Mass Education will serve as the executing agency for the program, while the Directorate of Primary Education (DPE) will be responsible for its implementation. The program's implementation period is set from 2019 to 2024.

The press release stated that ADB has been one of Bangladesh's largest multilateral development partners since the country became a member of ADB in 1973. ADB's total loans to Bangladesh currently amount to approximately $28,074 million, with grants totalling about $553.4 million.

The development assistance provided by ADB primarily focuses on power, energy, local government, transport, education, agriculture, health, water resources, governance, and financial sectors in Bangladesh.