DHAKA, March 17, 2021 (BSS) – The World Bank today approved $200 million
to help Bangladesh provide support and services to the low-income urban
youths impacted by the COVID 19 pandemic and the involuntary returnee
migrants to improve earning opportunities and resiliency.
The Recovery and Advancement of Informal Sector Employment (RAISE)
project will help about 175,000 poor urban youth and low-income micro
entrepreneurs enhance employability and productivity by helping them access
services such as life-skills training, apprenticeship programs, counseling,
microfinance, and self-employment support, said a World Bank press release.
The credit is from the World Bank’s International Development
Association (IDA), which provides concessional financing, has a 30-year term,
including a five-year grace period.
To help about 200,000 eligible migrants who had been forced to return
since January 2020 either sustainably reintegrate into the domestic labor
market or prepare for re-migration, the project will provide cash grants,
counseling, and referrals to relevant services based on their needs and
aspirations.
“International migration and urban informal sector have played a central
role in Bangladesh’s remarkable success in reducing poverty over the years.
However, both sectors were hit hard by the COVID 19 pandemic,” said Mercy
Tembon, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.
“The project will support both groups of workers to overcome structural
barriers to employability and facilitate resilient post-pandemic growth”, she
added.
The release said for the low-income urban youth and micro entrepreneurs
whose livelihoods have been impacted by COVID-19, the project will support an
economic inclusion program that will be tailored to fit the individual needs
of eligible beneficiaries.
The range of services offered include life-skills and socio-emotional
counselling; on-the-job learning through apprenticeship programs; business
management training; and microfinance for self-employment and informal micro-
enterprises.
Through a comprehensive program, the project will also help low-income
migrants, many of whom have returned with high debt burdens, by providing
counseling to help determine immediate needs and aspirations; socio-emotional
counseling to support their reintegration into the community; referrals to
technical, vocational or business management training to upgrade their skills
and enhance their ability for self-employment, and cash grants.
To provide these services, the project will set up 32 district welfare
centers. The project will also support upgrade and integration of information
systems that will streamline social protection service delivery for aspiring,
current, and returning migrants.
“While the project will focus on the immediate needs of migrants who
have returned due to COVID-19 impacts, through the systems development and
capacity building, it will also benefit outgoing and voluntarily returning
migrants, their families and communities, over the longer term,” said Syud
Amer Ahmed, World Bank Senior Economist and Team Leader for the project.
“It will also focus on the needs of female returnees, including
psychosocial counseling and referrals to gender-based violence related
services, as well as ensuring specific outreach activities to support their
economic reintegration.”added the World Bank official.