Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, special assistant to the chief adviser, has questioned whether international financial institutions should bear some responsibility for the economic mismanagement and corruption that plagued Bangladesh over the past 15 years.

Speaking at a seminar titled “Current Challenges in the Banking Sector: Borrowers’ Perspective,” hosted by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) on Sunday, Chowdhury took aim at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the World Bank for what he described as their uncritical support of the previous government.

“These institutions praised Bangladesh’s economic progress before the July revolution, and now they return with advice,” he said. “Should they not share responsibility for lending to a government under which large-scale corruption occurred?”

Chowdhury argued that despite widespread irregularities, global lenders continued disbursing funds without scrutiny of the environment in which public resources were being misused.

Referring to the IMF loan obtained by the former administration, he described it as putting the economy in an ICU. “Tell me, how many people actually survive after going to the ICU?” he asked, implying the nation narrowly escaped economic collapse.

Chowdhury credited the student-led July movement with not only saving Bangladesh politically but also averting deeper economic ruin.