Bangladesh aims to cut poverty rate to 15 percent
By IANSSunday, January 24, 2010
DHAKA - Bangladesh is working on a plan to cut its poverty rate to 15 percent by 2021, Local Government Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said Sunday.
Inaugurating the 2nd ministerial meeting of the Centre of Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) in Dhaka, he said Bangladesh wants CIRDAP to play a vital role for poverty alleviation and development of poorer nations, Xinhua reported.
Islam called upon the delegates of 14 countries, participating in the five-day meeting of CIRDAP, to extend all possible support to promoting the agriculture sector and rural development in particular.
“We are struggling very hard to develop agricultural sector and eradicate poverty,” he said.
An estimated 45-50 percent of Bangladesh’s 150 million people reportedly live below the international poverty line of $1.25 a day.
