Policymakers and experts on Tuesday stressed the effective mechanism to ensure inclusive financing so that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) could be attained in Asia and the Pacific region.
They argued that financial inclusion ensures access to finance to all section of population including vulnerable and low income group with suitable financial products. In this process, faster poverty alleviation and income inequality reduction could be possible.
They were talking at the Ministerial Plenary Session titled ‘Inclusive Financing for SDGs in Asia and the Pacific’ on the second day of Asia-Pacific Conference on Financing inclusive and Sustainable Development in Dhaka.
Planning Minister of Bangladesh Mr Muhammad Abdul Mannan moderated the session as the chair.
The session was also attend by Mr Bandula Gunawardena, Information and Communications Technology Minister of Sri Lanka; Mr. Bun Chanthy, Vice Commerce Minister of Cambodia; Dr Puspa Raj Kadel, Vice-Chairman of Nepali Planning Commission; Dr Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP; Mr. Manmohan Parkash, Bangladesh Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB); Dr AB Md Mirza Azizul Islam, former adviser to the caretaker government; and Prof Mohammad Ali Taslim, former chairman of Bangladesh Tariff Commission.
The International Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh (ICC,B) is organising the three-day conference at Hotel Intercontinental, in partnership with the ESCAP, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the government of Bangladesh.