In a courtesy meeting held at PKSF Bhaban on 5 November 2024, Christian Peter, Practice Manager of Environment, Natural Resources, and Blue Economy at the World Bank, commended Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) for its impressive progress on the Sustainable Microenterprise and Resilient Transformation (SMART) Project. “People need to have resilient livelihoods,” Peter noted, suggesting that PKSF could explore collaborations with other government projects to further strengthen its impact.

Presided over by PKSF’s Acting Managing Director, Md Fazlul Kader, the meeting underscored the enduring partnership between the World Bank and PKSF, which spans over 25 years. “The World Bank has always been beside PKSF in its three-decade journey of reducing poverty and creating sustainable employment opportunities for marginal communities,” Acting MD remarked. He acknowledged the World Bank’s continued support in providing financial and technical resources to advance PKSF’s activities.

Key figures at the meeting included PKSF’s Deputy Managing Director Dr Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed and General Manager & Project Coordinator of the SMART project Gokul Chandra Biswas, and World Bank’s Task Team Leader of the project Eun Joo Allison Yi. PKSF’s Assistant General Manager and Deputy Project Coordinator of SMART project Md Rawshan Habib, gave a presentation detailing PKSF’s recent achievements and the progress of the project.

Designed to strengthen the environmental sustainability of Bangladesh’s microenterprises, the SMART project aspires to benefit 80,000 microenterprises across manufacturing, agriculture, and service sectors. By leveraging innovative technologies, the project aims to enhance productivity, support job creation, empower women, and drive local economic growth.