World Bank Vice-President for South Asia Johannes Zutt has reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to supporting job creation in Bangladesh, particularly for youth and women, at the end of a three-day official visit.
During his visit, Johannes Zutt held meetings with key government figures, including the finance and planning minister, commerce minister, the Prime Minister’s adviser on finance and planning, and the Bangladesh Bank governor.
The discussions focused on Bangladesh’s development priorities and how the World Bank Group can further assist in advancing economic growth and employment.
“The government places strong emphasis on generating large-scale employment alongside enhancing skills and attracting investment, and the World Bank Group shares this priority,” Johannes Zutt said in a statement.
He highlighted that Bangladesh faces a significant employment challenge, noting that while around 14 million young people entered the labour market over the past decade, only about 8.7 million jobs were created. As a result, a large portion of working-age youth remain unemployed or underemployed, with young women facing even greater barriers to entering the workforce.
Johannes Zutt stressed the urgency of undertaking long-pending macroeconomic and financial sector reforms to remove structural obstacles to growth and job creation, particularly amid rising global uncertainties.
The World Bank Group is focusing on supporting Bangladesh by investing in infrastructure, strengthening human capital, improving the business environment, and mobilising private sector investment to generate employment opportunities.
Since Bangladesh’s independence, the World Bank has been a key development partner, committing over $46 billion in financing through grants, concessional loans and credits to support the country’s development agenda.
