EU to increase grants for BD

The European Union (EU) will increase its grant assistance by 40 per cent for Bangladesh in the next seven years.
William Hanna, the outgoing head of delegation of the EU to Bangladesh, made the announcement while talking to journalists at his farewell press briefing in the city on Tuesday.
“The EU will provide over €100 million grant assistance each year to Bangladesh from €60 million and the country will receive the same amount for the next seven years,” Hanna said, adding, “The EU will provide the assistance as part of its continuing commitment to the South Asian country.
The assistance would be given in three specific sectors in Bangladesh. These are education and skills, food security and nutrition, and democratic governance, he said.
“These are only grants, not loans. So, these are the money that needs to be used very carefully,” added the EU ambassador.
Hanna said, Bangladesh’s export to the European countries continues to rise over the years taking advantage of GSP facility provided by the EU. “Bangladesh’s export to EU market increased by 57 per cent during the last three years reaching over 10 billion Euro,” he added.
About industrial disaster in Bangladesh garment sector, he said, Bangladesh and the EU agreed on Sustainability Compact, designed to ensure safety and security of all factory workers.
All the issues of Sustainability Compact should be addressed to ensure safety and fair treatment of workers in sectors like leather, shrimps and tea which enjoy duty-free access to the EU market, he said.
Hanna also said that the EU will soon be tightening regulations on local ship-breaking industry considering safety of the workers.
“The message should be understood. In today’s world and tomorrow’s world, market access and sustainability go together. You cannot have one without the other,” he said.
Hanna said the Bangladesh-EU partnership is based on “mutual respect and meaningful policy dialogue on shared priorities”.
“It is focused on reducing poverty. These priorities also include democratic governance, inclusion of the poor and marginalised, gender equality, responsible business practices, environment sustainability, resilience to natural disasters and climate change.”
He lauded Bangladesh’s success in poverty reduction, increasing enrolment at primary schools and lowering infant and maternal mortality rate and said in these areas the country is considered “a model country”.
Still, he observed, there was a large number of poor population and considering this, the EU decided to increase its grant assistance to Bangladesh.
“We will focus this new support on education and skills, food security and nutrition, and democratic governance,” he said.
Hanna, who in his nearly four years of assignment witnessed eventful times in Bangladesh both on political and business fronts, said it had been his “most challenging assignment”.
” But I have greatly enjoyed my time here,” he said.
The head of delegation of the EU to Bangladesh will leave Dhaka this month. The deputy head of the EU’s Pakistan delegation Pierre Mayaudon will replace him, the EU earlier announced.