The government has started the process of framing its next five-year plan (FYP), giving special attention to its development goals for the country's further economic uplift.
To this end, the government has already formed a high-powered national steering committee (NSC) with Planning Minister MA Mannan, MP as its chairman and the senior secretary of GED as member secretary.
The NSC will provide necessary advice and guidance to General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Commission to formulate the 8th five-year plan (FYP) spanning from fiscal year 2021 to FY 2025.
Other members of the 62-man committee are economic affairs adviser to the prime minister, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on planning ministry, cabinet secretary, principal secretary of Prime Minister's Office (PMO), principal coordinator (SDG affairs) of the PMO, senior secretaries and secretaries of different ministries and divisions.
The Planning Commission issued a circular on July 01 last after setting up the NSC on the 8th FYP, a senior assistant secretary told the FE.
"Now the government is engaged in devising plans to attain a developed country status by 2041 that will be focused in the next five-year plan," he added.
The newly formed NSC will assist GED during the process of preparing the eighth FYP including required monitoring and guidance, he said.
It will give directives to mobilise necessary resources for implementing the plans. Besides, the NSC will review the draft 8th FYP and put forward recommendation to the National Economic Council (NEC) for approval to the plan.
Since the country's independence, GED is formulating five-year plans except 2003-2011 when the country adopted three poverty reduction strategy papers (PRSPs).
In 2011, GED prepared a perspective plan for the first time in the development history of the country to articulate the government's vision 2021, defining milestone economic and social outcomes to be achieved by 2021.
The target of vision 2021 and associated 'perspective plan of Bangladesh (2010-2021)' were decided to be achieved through the implementation of 6th FYP (2011-15) and 7th FYP (2016-20).
Sixth FYP had already been implemented in last five years (2011-2015. During the 6th plan regime, the country has made remarkable progress in rising incomes, reducing poverty, and improving social indicators compared to any other previously implemented plan.
The 7th FYP, spanning fiscal years 2016-2020, begins with the country having entered the ranks of middle- income countries.
The 7th FYP seeks to raise the GDP growth rate progressively from 6.5 per cent in FY 15 to 8 per cent by FY 20. The average growth rate was projected at 7.4 per cent over the Seventh FYP period.
The process of preparing the 8th FYP was initiated at the end of 2014, according to GED documents.
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