ADB Vice-President Yingming Yang stated that the bank will continue to work with Bangladesh to build a productive, investment-driven, and resilient economy, creating new opportunities for people across all regions of the country and improving the quality of life for all.
In an exclusive interview with Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), the ADB Vice-President for South, Central, and West Asia, Yingming Yang, said that the ADB's goal is to assist Bangladesh in realizing its aspirations of becoming an upper-middle-income country and a trillion-dollar economy by 2034.
Yingming Yang visited Bangladesh from August 9 to 13. During the visit, he held policy discussions with high-level government representatives regarding the ADB's upcoming Country Partnership Strategy (CPS), critical reforms, investment priorities, and the implementation of the Integrated Growth Network Development (IGND) initiative.
More to Read
Yang noted that Bangladesh has demonstrated remarkable resilience due to robust remittance inflows, sustained activity in the services sector, and a dynamic private sector. There is now an opportunity to leverage this capacity for deeper economic transformation.
In his view, with macroeconomic stability, declining inflation, and rising investor confidence, growth is expected to gradually increase in the coming days.
According to ADB forecasts, Bangladesh's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth could reach 3.7 percent in fiscal year 2026 and 4.5 percent in fiscal year 2027.
However, Yingming Yang believes that sustaining this momentum requires continuity in structural reforms. He stated that recent initiatives—such as strengthening tax administration, improving governance in the banking sector, tackling non-performing loans, establishing discipline in the financial sector, and moving towards a market-based exchange rate system—are positive steps.
The ADB official said that by improving the investment climate, expanding reliable and affordable energy, strengthening public investment management, diversifying export products, developing a skilled workforce, creating more opportunities for women and youth, and enhancing disaster resilience, Bangladesh can pave the way for stronger and more inclusive growth.
He emphasized that at the center of this entire process lies the development of the private sector and making the market investment-friendly. This will channel private capital into productive sectors, ensuring job creation and sustainable growth.
For the people of Bangladesh, this means better employment opportunities, competitive industries, improved services, and new opportunities beyond the traditional growth hubs. He commented that these reforms are critical for increasing productivity, attracting investment, and achieving long-term sustainable development.
When asked about the new Country Partnership Strategy for Bangladesh, Yingming Yang said that ADB's partnership has evolved over time in line with Bangladesh's aspirations and development goals.
He stated that in formulating the new strategy, the ADB's aim is to help Bangladesh move towards a more diversified, competitive, inclusive, and resilient economy. Special emphasis is being placed on private sector-led economic diversification and enhancing the capacity to withstand various shocks.
In his words, the future partnership will help propel Bangladesh's economy beyond mere resilience towards genuine transformation.
Yingming Yang said that the IGND initiative will create opportunities to reduce transport and logistics costs, increase economic opportunities beyond major cities, and connect businesses and labor markets to larger markets. This will help build a more competitive, diversified, and resilient economy, which in turn will sustain high-quality growth and employment. At the same time, it will enable the benefits of growth to be distributed more widely across different regions and communities of the country.
Regarding regional cooperation, he said that Bangladesh enjoys a unique strategic advantage due to its location between the large and rapidly growing markets of South and Southeast Asia.
During his visit to Bangladesh last May, ADB President Masato Kanda had mentioned the vast potential for Bangladesh to emerge as a regional hub for transport, logistics, energy, and digital connectivity.
Yingming Yang said that by leveraging its strategic location, Bangladesh will have the opportunity to expand trade, attract investment, integrate into regional value chains, and deepen economic relations with neighboring regions. This, too, is an important element in transforming Bangladesh's economy from resilience to transformation.
However, he commented that infrastructure development alone is not enough to fully harness this potential. In his view, roads, railways, seaports, border infrastructure, and energy connections will only yield full benefits when complemented by efficient customs systems, harmonized standards, predictable regulatory frameworks, and seamless logistics.
In his words, physical infrastructure and policy alignment must move forward together.
He added that regional energy cooperation would strengthen energy security and accelerate the transition to clean energy.
Yingming Yang also mentioned the recently launched ADB's $20 billion Asia-Pacific Digital Highway initiative.
He said this initiative would create new opportunities for Bangladesh to enhance digital connectivity, expand reliable broadband access, and develop digital and AI-based skills.
He added that by connecting with the Digital Highway initiative, Bangladesh could more effectively meet the needs of farmers, entrepreneurs, exporters, young workers, and women entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the IGND and the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) initiatives could also serve as important platforms to achieve these goals.
However, he believes that initiatives to enhance regional connectivity can never be a substitute for domestic reforms. Rather, they make reforms more effective. If Bangladesh's internal competitiveness is enhanced, the country can better capitalize on regional opportunities. At the same time, increased regional connectivity creates stronger incentives for investment, innovation, and reform.
Yingming Yang said that through the integrated implementation of these initiatives, Bangladesh can build a more connected, competitive, and opportunity-rich economy. In the next phase of development, private sector-led growth, innovation, and investment will become the primary drivers of long-term positive change.