Bangladesh May Lose $500 Million a Year

DHAKA, Bangladesh — The gulf crisis may cost Bangladesh, one of the world’s poorest countries, up to $500 million annually, according to Finance Minister Abdul Munim.

He told business leaders Monday that Bangladesh will lose $100 million from remittances sent by 75,000 Bangladeshis who worked in Kuwait before Iraq invaded the emirate. And Bangladesh will have to pay an extra $250 million for oil imports and suffer substantial export losses.

Bangladesh, with annual per capita income of $170, receives $2 billion from the world’s rich nations each year to pay for 90% of its development budget.

Munim said Bangladesh needs about $28 million to evacuate people stranded in Kuwait and neighboring countries. Foreign Ministry officials said Tuesday that more than 13,000 of 45,000 Bangladeshis who had fled Kuwait have flown home. The rest are expected to leave by the end of the month.