World Bank, Bangladeshi government sign multi-donor trust fund agreement for country's health sector

"On Wednesday, the World Bank and the Bangladeshi government signed a Multi-Donor Trust Fund Grant Agreement" under which "$280 million coming from the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Sweden will go to the Bangladesh Health Sector Development Program, which aims to improve the health status of people in Bangladesh, particularly women, children and the marginalized," the Devex "Development Newswire" reports. "The government will finance 75 percent of the program," and "[t]he World Bank will also provide a $359 million credit through its anti-poverty arm, the International Development Association," the news service writes (Ravelo, 9/13). "The program will focus on improving emergency obstetric and newborn care services and the nutritional status of expectant mothers and their children" and "will also strengthen health sector planning and resource management, human resources development, management of pharmaceuticals, health information systems and maintenance of health care facilities," a World Bank press release states (9/12).