The government will continue implementation of the stimulus programmes in the next fiscal year (FY), 2022-23, taken to help the economy make recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic impacts.
"The stimulus programmes will continue in the coming fiscal year to further accelerate the pace of development by speeding up the recovery process and bringing the economy back to its pre-pandemic state," Finance Minister A H M Mustafa Kamal said in his budget speech on Thursday.
He noted that while the adversities arising from the Covid pandemic have eased up, a new crisis has emerged following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
"We have seriously considered this evolving crisis in determining the priority areas of the government in the forthcoming budget."
The minister said special emphasis has been given in the budget on the implementation of various programmes to generate employment in the industrial sector, CMSME, service sector and rural informal sector as well as for the returnee migrant workers.
At the same time, the implementation of the stimulus packages will continue to offset losses of the affected enterprises, keep the economy afloat, and help the workers temporarily jobless during the pandemic.
According to him, some 71.55 per cent of the Covid-19 stimulus packages were implemented until April this year.
Also, the programmes that the government has adopted with a focus on increasing the coverage of social security, ensuring housing for homeless poor, and distributing free or low-cost food among low-income people will continue, the minister noted.
Mr Kamal added that in FY 2021-22, the government established the 'Fund for Managing the Shocks of Natural Disasters', and it will continue in the next fiscal.
He proposed an allocation of Tk 50 billion in the budget for this fund in FY 2022-23.
syful-islam@outlook.com