Staff Reporter:
Bangladesh will need about $421 billion in extra funding over the next five years to attain Sustainable Development Goals–according to a new government assessment unveiled yesterday at a national work-shop in Dhaka.
The Economic Relations Division (ERD), with support from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office in Bangladesh, organized the aforementioned ‘Na-tional Validation Workshop on the Development Finance Assessment (DFA) and SDG Financing’.
The workshop reviewed findings from the DFA– a global tool that helps align financing policies, insti-tutions, and financial flows with national development priorities and also discussed Bangladesh’s updated SDG Financing Strategy.
Speaking as the chief guest, Secretary of ERD Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky said “The remaining period of SDGs up to 2030 will be challenging. The financing gap is large, the time available is limited, and the global environment remains uncertain. Nevertheless, I remain confident that Bangladesh can make mean-ingful progress,”
“What we now need is a clear set of priorities, coordinated action, better governance and effective im-plementation.” he added.
Carol Flore-Smereczniak, UN Resident Coordinator, highlighted the significance of domestic resource mobilization at this moment in Bangladesh’s development journey. She said, “In yesterday’s world, op-portunities for development financing are diminishing. This is an opportunity for Bangladesh to increase its domestic investment in the SDGs, by increasing the tax-to-GDP ratio and by encouraging the private sector to make SDG-aligned investments”.
Additional Secretary of ERD and the Chair of the event A.H.M. Jahangir stressed the need for a joined-up financing plan as Bangladesh prepares to graduate from LDC status, said an ERD press release.
Speaking for UNDP, Sonali Dayaratne, Deputy Resident Representative, underscored the need for stronger financing policies and partnerships to close the funding gap.
“The financing gap to meet national development targets has further widened. The government can de-ploy public resources to leverage and derisk private investments. The challenge is of economic govern-ance. Getting it right requires building a financial ecosystem that is grounded in the application of trans-parent rules and regulations for all.” she said.
Presenting the findings, Dr Selim Raihan, Professor of Economics at the University of Dhaka, outlined Bangladesh’s changing financing landscape and options for raising more money from public and private sources.
He presented the $421 billion estimate for FY2026–FY2030, noting most of it will need to come from domestic public and private finance, climate finance and international partnerships.
