No room for complacency on economy: Planning minister

Planning minister MA Mannan has said that Bangladesh’s economy is quite stable now, but there is no room for complacency due to global geo-economic challenges, reports UNB.

The planning minister was addressing a pre-budget (FY2023-24) discussion meeting organised by Bangladesh Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI) as the chief.

“The Russia-Ukraine war, global energy price increase, and interest rate hike by the US Fed have impacted our economy. Due to these reasons Bangladesh Bank has taken cautionary measures in terms of import and LC opening and this is why our reserve is still quite stable," said the minister.

He also said that as our tax-to-GDP ratio is not satisfactory and our revenue collection is also low, there is no alternative to increasing the tax net.

Underscoring the importance of tax automation, simplification of the taxation system, and the use of technology, the minister said that agriculture, leather, light engineering, pharmaceuticals, and other important sectors should get the same facilities as the RMG sector gets.

At his speech, MA Mannan emphasised product diversification of our exportable items to be competitive after LDC graduation.

Moreover, considering the global economic downturn and instability, the next budget will not be an over-ambitious one, he added.

The speakers of the session stressed internal resource mobilisation and digitisation or automation of the taxation system.

Honorable high commissioner of Malaysia Haznah Md Hashim was also present at the pre-budget discussion as a guest of honor.