Finally the cat is out of the bag. After months of self-denial, Bangladesh has finally sought support from Saudi Arabia to tackle the country’s ongoing foreign crisis.

“We get 45 days to pay for fuel imports from Saudi Arabia. But, due to the dollar situation, we told them that it would be good for us if they could give us a year,” Salman F Rahman, the private industry and investment advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said after a three-day trip to the kingdom. “They [Saudi] said they will consider the matter.”

There are indications that of energy prices get worse and money laundering continues unabated , PM Hasina may seek Chinese help to shore its forex reserves which in July 2022 had stood at $20 billion but has now below half that figure.

Rahman, whose Beximco conglomerate is seen as one of the worse bank defaulters and stands accused of extensive money-laundering, has used his position as Hasina’s adviser to nor only deflect repayment calls by banks on his corporation but has secured an additional loan of 22000 crores BDTaka before the Jan 2024 parliament elections.

That confirms the worst fears of Bangladesh businesspersons who have being running around banks seeking to open Letters of Credits (LC) for critical imports and facing continuous refusal — that “dollars are more difficult to find than a passage to heaven”, as one baby food importer Khalil Ahmed said.

“Why can’t Hasina take the services of a solid economist of integrity snd competence to handle her finances rather than employ controversial figures like Salman Rahman,” said a top garment exporter who did not wish to be named for fear of vendetta. “The Rahmans are the problem and not the solution to our crisis.”

The Hasina government has claimed Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $17.20 billion at the end of December 2023, falling short of the relaxed target of a minimum of $17.78 billion set by the IMF.

But the situation two months has got worse and the reserves have reportedly dropped below the $ 15 billion mark

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had approved a $4.7 billion loan for Bangladesh in January last year and fixed a minimum Forex Reserve, also called the Net International Reserve (NIR) of $26.81 billion by December 2023 end.

However, that target was later relaxed to $17.78 billion, $19.27 billion for March and $20.11 billion for June.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s willingness to support Bangladesh’s request for a $4.5 billion bailout package over the next three years confirms that the country’s economy is facing a serious crisis.

It is the third country in the region, after Sri Lanka and Pakistan, that knocked on the door of the IMF in recent months. “While the economic crises in Pakistan........

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