Economic Relations Division

What Economic Relations Division does

The Economic Relations Division (ERD) is a government division under the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh, established in 1971 following the country's independence. ERD serves as the central coordination body for all foreign development assistance flowing into Bangladesh, managing relationships with bilateral and multilateral development partners including the World Bank (USD 8,683M contributions), Asian Development Bank (USD 6,801M), JICA (USD 5,593M), DFID (USD 2,198M), USAID (USD 945M), and various UN agencies. The division administers foreign aid mobilization, negotiation, and coordination, tracking approximately USD 49,879 million in total aid commitments and USD 30,346 million in disbursements across 1,345 projects (743 ongoing) through its Aid Information Management System (AIMS) public portal.

ERD operates a portfolio of digital platforms built around its core AIMS portal, which provides public transparency on foreign assistance flows. Supporting systems include the Foreign Aid Management System (FAMS) for internal project data management, the International Climate Finance Cell (ICFC) portal for climate finance resources, and dedicated portals for the Bangladesh Sweden Trust Fund (BSTF) and LDC Graduation tracking (SSGP). The division also manages human resource development programs, including the JDS scholarship program for Bangladeshi civil servants and Sweden-Bangladesh joint scholarship initiatives. Technical infrastructure includes integration with IATI (International Aid Transparency Initiative) for standardized data import and a GIS tool for geographical visualization of development projects.

As a government entity, ERD does not generate commercial revenue and is funded through annual budget allocations from the Ministry of Finance. The division's services are provided free of charge to other Bangladesh government ministries and divisions, with its primary counterparties being bilateral and multilateral development partners. ERD's mandate has expanded over time to include LDC graduation transition strategy, climate finance coordination, and debt sustainability monitoring, reflecting Bangladesh's evolving economic relationships and development priorities. The division is led by Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and Secretary Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiqui, with a workforce of 501-1,000 employees headquartered in Dhaka.

Name

Economic Relations Division

Legal name

Economic Relations Division (ERD), Ministry of Finance, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh

Website

https://erd.gov.bd

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The Economic Relations Division (ERD) is a Bangladesh government division under the Ministry of Finance that centrally coordinates all foreign development assistance, managing approximately USD 50 billion in aid commitments across 1,345 projects and relationships with the World Bank, ADB, JICA, and other development partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Development Cooperation and Foreign Aid Administration

NAICS

International Affairs (928120), National Security and International Affairs (928), Public Finance Activities (92113)

SIC

International Affairs (9721), Foreign Governments (8888)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAIAIAG

Development Cooperation & Foreign Aid Administration

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Foreign Affairs & Diplomatic Services

SECONDARYBPADAEAD

Governance, Public Financial Management & Service Delivery Reform

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/International Development & Technical Assistance

SECONDARYBPADACAN

Technical Assistance, Policy Lending & Capacity Building Programs

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/International Financial Institutions & Development Banks

Keywords

• Foreign aid coordination
• Development assistance management
• External debt administration
• Climate finance mobilization
• Scholarship administration

Headquarters

HQ city

Dhaka

HQ country

Bangladesh

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Budget Allocation: ERD is a government department funded through annual budget allocations from the Ministry of Finance. It does not generate commercial revenue but manages and coordinates foreign development assistance flows.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Economic Relations Division is a government division under the Ministry of Finance of Bangladesh that coordinates foreign development assistance and economic relations with bilateral and multilateral development partners. It administers foreign aid tracking and transparency through the Aid Information Management System (AIMS), manages external debt and borrowing plans, oversees climate finance access via the International Climate Finance Cell, and administers scholarship and human resource development programs such as JDS and the Bangladesh Sweden Trust Fund.

Product overview

The Economic Relations Division (ERD) operates a unified e-government service portfolio centered around its main Aid Information Management System (AIMS), a comprehensive platform for tracking and managing foreign assistance to Bangladesh. The system connects to various sub-products including FAMS (Foreign Aid Management System) for internal aid data management, complemented by specialized service portals for climate finance, LDC graduation, and scholarship programs (JDS, BSTB). ERD's digital services also include the E-Services Portal providing citizen-facing services, with publications like Flow of External Resources and STS documents supporting transparency and transition planning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AIMS (Aid Information Management System): A publicly-accessible internet tool for tracking foreign assistance in Bangladesh
• Bangladesh Sweden Trust Fund (BSTFT)
• International Climate Finance Cell (ICFC)
• FAMS (Foreign Aid Management System)

Products and services

• Aid Information Management System (AIMS) A comprehensive web-based system for tracking foreign aid in Bangladesh. AIMS records and processes information provided by donors on development activities and aid flows, serving as a transparency initiative for the Government of Bangladesh. It supports IATI-standardized data import and includes a GIS Tool for visualizing aid data geographically. As tracked in the system: USD 49,879 million in total commitments and USD 30,346 million in total disbursements across 1,345 projects, of which 743 are ongoing.
• Foreign Aid Management System (FAMS) Internal system for managing foreign aid data and project information entry at ERD. FAMS enables project information entry and foreign aid management workflows within the division, complementing the public-facing AIMS portal.
• International Climate Finance Cell (ICFC) Dedicated cell within ERD for managing international climate finance, coordinating climate-related funding and resources, including access to the Green Climate Fund for climate adaptation and mitigation projects in Bangladesh.
• LDC Graduation Website (SSGP) Dedicated portal for Bangladesh's Least Developed Country graduation process, providing information and resources related to the smooth transition strategy (STS) covering various aspects of transition planning.
• Bangladesh Sweden Trust Fund (BSTF) A scholarship and fellowship program jointly administered by Bangladesh and Sweden through ERD to support human resource development. Operates as a bilateral trust fund for development cooperation between Bangladesh and Sweden.
• Project for Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS) Japanese-funded scholarship program managed through ERD supporting Bangladeshi civil servants for postgraduate studies in Japan, as part of bilateral human resource development cooperation.
• ERD E-Services Portal Comprehensive online portal providing citizen e-services including Bangladesh Sweden Trust Fund, International Climate Finance Cell, LCG (Local Consultative Group), and JDS scholarship applications, along with internal e-services such as email systems and D-Nothi (digital nothification system).

Named customers10 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Germany (GIZ)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGermany implements development projects through GIZ, with ERD coordinating grant agreements for five projects. Germany and Bangladesh signed MoU on development cooperation on 11 June 2026.
• Project for Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJapanese-funded scholarship program managed through ERD supporting Bangladeshi civil servants for postgraduate studies in Japan.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• International Cooperation Division, Ministry of Finance (Nepal): Nepal's aid coordination body under the Ministry of Finance manages foreign assistance mobilization and donor engagement with similar multilateral partners (WB, ADB, JICA) and a comparable LDC/transition context.
• Economic Affairs Division, Ministry of Finance (Pakistan): Pakistan's EAD coordinates foreign economic assistance, multilateral lending, and debt management for Pakistan — closely analogous in mandate, structure, and South Asian operating context.
• External Resources Department, Ministry of Finance (Sri Lanka): Sri Lanka's ERD coordinates foreign aid, debt management, and development partner engagement for Sri Lanka — directly comparable in function and regional context despite different scale and recent debt restructuring.
• Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance (India): India's DEA performs an analogous role for India, coordinating multilateral and bilateral development assistance, managing external debt, and interfacing with World Bank/ADB/JICA. ERD's direct functional equivalent at larger scale.

Emerging players

• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ): GIZ implements German development projects in Bangladesh (with active ERD coordination on 5 projects). Comparable as a bilateral implementing agency counterpart and a recent signatory (June 2026) of bilateral development cooperation MoU with Bangladesh.

Broad incumbents

• Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA): JICA is one of ERD's largest bilateral development partners (USD 5,593M contributions), a major established incumbent in development cooperation. Comparability is on the supply side of the same foreign-aid market ERD operates on the demand side.
• World Bank: World Bank is ERD's largest development partner (USD 8,683M contributions) and a dominant multilateral institution in development finance. Comparable as a counterparty and structural player in the same foreign-aid ecosystem ERD coordinates.
• USAID: USAID is a major bilateral donor (USD 945M contributions) implementing development programs in Bangladesh. Comparable as the US government counterpart in the bilateral development relationship ERD manages.
• Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO): FCDO absorbed DFID (USD 2,198M contributions to Bangladesh) in 2020 and is one of the major bilateral donors. Comparable as a UK-side counterpart in development cooperation policy and program delivery.
• Asian Development Bank (ADB): ADB is ERD's second-largest partner (USD 6,801M contributions), a major multilateral development bank. Comparable as the counterparty for policy-based lending and concessional assistance that ERD helps negotiate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php?id=61578688371792
• Xx.com/erd_bd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/erd-bd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Economic Relations Division