Bangladesh seeks $1 bln budget support from World Bank, ADB

DHAKA, July 13 (Reuters) - Bangladesh has called on the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank to double budget support in 2009/10 to nearly $1 billion to help the country fight the impact of the global financial crisis, a senior official said on Monday.

"We have formally approached them to allocate a special fund to help us face the impact of the meltdown mainly on exports and remittances," said Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, secretary of economic relations division of the ministry of finance.

The two sectors provide major streams of foreign currency for the country and revenues for the government.

Musharraf told Reuters that Bangladesh needs the support to allow higher public spending on the likes of the social safety net, exporters and to generate jobs.

The 2009/10 budget has earmarked $725 million to fight the downturn. The government has projected a record budget deficit of 5 percent of gross domestic product.

Kunio Senga, the ADB's South Asia director general, said last week that the bank would help, particularly in infrastructure investment and through and expanded social safety net. [ID:nDHA392927]

Bangladesh's annual exports growth shrank to 12.5 percent in the first 10 months of 2008/09, almost halving from a 22 percent rate in the first half of the year.

Growth in remittances sent to Bangladesh from workers overseas slowed to 22 percent in 2008/09 from 32 percent a year earlier. Bangladesh's fiscal year runs from July to June.

($1=69 taka)

(Reporting by Serajul Islam Quadir; Editing by Neil Fullick)