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🇧🇩 Bangladesh /Economy & Trade

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From Daily Star · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • An independent MP in Bangladesh has criticized the proposed Tk 9.38 lakh crore budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, questioning its implementability.
  • Concerns include unrealistic revenue targets, increasing debt reliance, a weak investment climate, and insufficient allocations for education and health.
  • The MP highlighted the significant gap between revenue collection and targets, the high level of non-performing loans, and factors hindering investment, such as energy shortages and bureaucratic hurdles.

Independent Member of Parliament Rumeen Farhana has voiced strong concerns regarding the proposed Tk 9.38 lakh crore budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, asserting that it lacks the necessary conditions to stimulate investment and questioning its overall feasibility.

Although the budget totals Tk 9.38 lakh crore, serious questions remain over whether it can be implemented.

— Rumeen FarhanaIndependent MP Rumeen Farhana expressing doubts about the feasibility of the proposed budget during a parliamentary discussion.

During a parliamentary discussion on the budget, Farhana pointed to several critical issues. She noted that the revenue target is set at Tk 6.95 lakh crore, with the National Board of Revenue (NBR) expected to collect over Tk 6.04 lakh crore. However, she highlighted that as of April, the NBR had only managed to collect just over Tk 3.26 lakh crore in the current fiscal year. Farhana questioned the realism of expecting more than double that amount in the remaining two months, warning that failure to meet targets would increase the fiscal deficit and government borrowing.

If an institution cannot collect Tk 3.26 lakh crore in ten months, how realistic is it to expect over Tk 6 lakh crore in a year?

— Rumeen FarhanaMP Rumeen Farhana questioning the National Board of Revenue's ability to meet its revenue targets.

Farhana further elaborated on the dire state of investment in Bangladesh, describing it as experiencing "unprecedented stagnation." She attributed this to a combination of factors, including energy shortages, weaknesses in the financial sector, high inflation, and general economic uncertainty. Despite the government's stated aim to shift from a debt-driven to an investment-driven economy, the conditions required for investment remain absent due to persistent issues like gas and power shortages, bureaucratic obstacles, inadequate infrastructure, high interest rates, and financing constraints.

Energy shortages, financial sector weaknesses, high inflation, and economic uncertainty are all obstructing investment.

— Rumeen FarhanaMP Rumeen Farhana listing the factors contributing to the stagnation of investment in Bangladesh.

The MP stressed the direct link between investment and job creation, stating, "Without investment, new jobs cannot be created. That is why Bangladesh’s growth is often called ‘jobless growth.’" She also raised alarm about the banking sector, citing the total amount of non-performing loans (NPLs) at Tk 6.44 lakh crore. Including written-off, rescheduled, and pending loans, this figure could rise to Tk 11 lakh crore, representing 59.73 percent of total loans. This situation, she argued, severely limits the banks' capacity to support the government's financial needs.

Without investment, new jobs cannot be created. That is why Bangladesh’s growth is often called ‘jobless growth.’

— Rumeen FarhanaMP Rumeen Farhana explaining the link between investment and job creation in the context of Bangladesh's economy.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Daily Star. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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