The fundamental challenge facing policymakers in implementing a contractionary budget will be patience

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) today said that the government's target to reduce inflation to 6.5 percent in the fiscal year 2024-25 appears overly ambitious

Budget day is turning into our very own Groundhog Day.

The FY 2024-25 budget falls short of assessing the depth of the economically challenging time.

Bangladesh truly is unique in the sense that its government keeps granting individuals the opportunity to whiten black money, despite its questionable record of success. An amount of Tk 78 crore was whitened in the 1977-78 budget, Tk 850 crore during 1987-90, Tk 1,000 crore during 2000-01, Tk 4,403 crore during 2005-06, Tk 9,683 crore during 2007-08, Tk 1,213 crore during 2009-10, and Tk 20,600 crore in 2020-21.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday termed the proposed national budget “anti-Bangladesh”, saying it contains new schemes to facilitate the embezzlement of public money by the ruling party-backed looters.

In its first proposed budget after assuming power for a fourth consecutive term, the Awami League government skirted round some of the promises the party made in its election manifesto for the January 7 parliamentary polls.

The budget for the upcoming fiscal year, presented in the context of inordinately complex economic circumstances, reflects both the government’s restraint and limitations.

Budget out of Tk 100

Budget at a glance

Despite repeated calls from educationists to increase the budget for education sector, the proposed allocation this fiscal year is still far behind the expected level.

Under the FY24-25 social safety net programme of Bangladesh, the pension for retired government employees and savings scheme interest payments account for nearly the same allocation as social assistance for the poor, the old and the disaster-struck.

The tax measures unveiled yesterday for 2024-25 are not going to provide any relief to taxpayers.

Default loans in the banking sector of Bangladesh hit an all-time high of Tk 182,295 crore, but no reform programme to reduce it has been announced in the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

The government has hiked the supplementary duty on mobile top-ups alongside VAT on SIM cards, pushing up costs that will be incurred by mobile and internet users, which will inevitably put a financial strain on access to essential services.

In yet another blow to stock market investors, the government plans to impose a capital gains tax on them from next fiscal year.

The new budget for the upcoming fiscal year is unlikely to provide respite from one of the longest spells of sustained inflation in Bangladesh as the government’s measures appear to be missing the impetus required to contain the price spiral.

The food ministry spent less in fiscal 2022-2023 compared to fiscal 2009-2010, according to data on expenditure over the last 13 years.

The government has slightly reduced the allocations for transport and power and energy compared to the outgoing fiscal year.

Bangladesh’s per capita income will be $3,000 at the end of FY25 as the government expects economic growth to recover. Per capita GDP is projected at $2,780 at the end of FY24. It has been growing steadily over the last two decades. It was $700 in 2000 and about $300 in 1990.