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Bangladesh
>> Regional Overview >> Bangladesh Overview Program Data Sheet
388-005
USAID MISSION: Bangladesh
PROGRAM TITLE: Private Enterprise Development (Pillar: Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Trade)
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE AND NUMBER: Growth of Agribusiness and Small Business, 388-005
STATUS: Continuing
PLANNED FY 2002 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $ 5,000,000 DA
PROPOSED FY 2003 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $ 5,600,000 DA; $3,500,000 ESF
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 2000 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2006Summary: USAID’s program for enterprise development, primarily funded by DA resources, includes—
- technical assistance to develop and promote the implementation of more market-oriented policies, laws and regulations;
- training to strengthen key business support organizations; and
- technical assistance for enterprises in targeted sectors to become more competitive.
Direct beneficiaries include rural households, small private firms and agribusiness.
Inputs, Outputs, and Activities: FY 2002 Program: USAID will continue technical assistance and training to support enterprise development activities in agribusiness, pond aquaculture and small business development. In addition, a new enterprise development project will be designed that combines appropriate policy with institutional and enterprise-level interventions aimed at facilitating private-sector growth in a competitive market environment. In addition, modest new pilot initiatives will be funded to assist the Government of Bangladesh (GOB) with its reform initiatives and policy priorities. These initiatives will include information and communications technology (ICT) strategy, policy reforms in the telecommunications sector, financial sector, bank regulation, business market development constraints analysis, and other areas affecting economic growth.
Planned FY 2003 Program: USAID intends to use FY 2003 resources to continue support for ongoing projects in agribusiness, aquaculture and enterprise development. Pending the findings of an Enterprise Development Assessment, an Information Technology-Enabled Service Sector study in FY 2003, and the outcome of the FY 2002 pilot activities described in the previous paragraph, longer-term projects to promote development of the nascent ICT sector will be established. Targeted policy reforms or market development efforts will also be designed. ESF funds will be used to support key reform opportunities in the financial sector as well as GOB privatization initiatives.
Performance and Results: Sales growth of assisted firms increased by $23.8 million in 2001, including $5.1 million in exports—bringing cumulative facilitated sales to over $95 million. USAID continues to be seen as a leader in bringing modern information technology (IT) to Bangladesh, as evidenced by sponsorship of a major conference on e-commerce. The successful conference stimulated the development of a GOB policy agenda, establishment of the country’s first e-commerce website, and work to develop a comprehensive IT Act. In FY 2002 USAID will respond to a GOB request to carry out an IT-enabled service sector study that will provide a framework for an overall IT sector strategy. Innovative approaches to developing market linkages are showing promising results. Small-scale pineapple and milk producers belonging to informal, USAID-organized commodity-based business associations are receiving higher prices for their products and are expanding their markets and access to commercial lines of credit. In the leather footwear industry, USAID is leading the way in developing export markets, for example, helping to increase Bangladesh’s penetration into the Japanese footwear market by over 100% in the past two years. These increased footwear exports are supported by creating backward linkages in the production and marketing chain to small and medium-sized firms and newly-formed microentrepreneurial clusters whose employees are learning technical skills that are in sync with world market footwear product demand. USAID expects that by 2006, enterprises that have been assisted under its program will have generated over $300 million in additional sales and will have created significant employment opportunities in both rural and urban areas of Bangladesh.
USAID’s program also directly improves the livelihoods of at least 200,000 poor rural households every year through its fishpond and home gardening activities. The former helps rural families throughout Bangladesh to increase fish production in small ponds with environmentally sound, low-cost fish-farming technologies. It has realized dramatic impacts on household income and employment, and also has improved nutrition of participating families. Fish production from ponds of participating farmers has increased fourfold, and net income has tripled. Last year, the project helped 11,600 households produce 2,200 MT of fish worth $1.76 million, and created employment for 6,800 persons (51% women). Since its inception, the home gardening project has worked with over 870,000 rural households around the country, promoting household vegetable and fruit production as a means to improve nutrition and also raise incomes through sale of surplus crop produce. There is evidence that the program has improved the Vitamin A status of its primary beneficiaries, poor rural women and their young children. Opportunities for small nursery businesses are also being created, as over 10,000 village nurseries have been started. Home gardening has also stimulated positive social change for women by providing opportunities for micro-enterprise development, training, and involvement in local support networks. Ninety-five percent of the beneficiaries are women. In 2001, the home gardening program stimulated $4.68 million in new sales growth and tens of thousands of job-equivalents (75% female).
By FY 2006, USAID assistance will have increased opportunities for more people to fully participate in Bangladesh’s economy—from rural households starting small businesses to private businesses expanding within a more competitive market environment.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID's activities are currently implemented through the University of Maryland’s Institutional Reform and the Informal Sector Center (IRIS) (prime), the Louis Berger Group (prime), Cargill (sub), Land O’Lakes (sub), the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (prime), and Helen Keller, International (prime). New implementing partners will be selected for the new activities as they are designed.
US Financing in Thousands of Dollars
388-005 Growth of agribusiness and small business CSD DA ESF Through September 30, 2000 Obligations 1,000 11,359 0 Expenditures 739 4,050 0 Unliquidated 261 7,309 0 Fiscal Year 2001 Obligations 0 5,700 0 Expenditures 261 4,873 0 Through September 30, 2001 Obligations 1,000 17,059 0 Expenditures 1,000 8,923 0 Unliquidated 0 8,136 0 Prior Year Unobligated Funds Obligations 0 0 0 Planned Fiscal Year 2002 NOA Obligations 0 5,250 0 Total Planned Fiscal Year 2002 Obligations 0 5,250 0 Proposed Fiscal Year 2003 NOA Obligations 0 6,848 1,000 Future Obligations 0 14,729 0 Est. Total Cost 1,000 43,886 1,000
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Last Updated on: May 29, 2002 |
