Governor pleads for full autonomy of central bank

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Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Salehuddin Ahmed stressed the need for full-scale autonomy of his organisation for smooth functioning of the banking sector, overhauling which has been a slow haul, reports UNB.
He made the appeal Sunday in the presence of Foreign Affairs Adviser of the caretaker government (CG) Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury at a policy dialogue on 'Safe Migration and Remittances' at the BRAC Centre Inn.
"Bangladesh Bank does not enjoy full autonomy like the other central banks in the world," he said.
Talking to reporters, after the programme, he said for taking many decisions they have to send the proposals to different ministries and that creates procrastination.
"Many times we don't get a desired response from the ministries concerned regarding some references and clearances," he lamented, indicating the malfunction of the foot-dragging bureaucracy.
Responding to a question, the central bank chief told the news agency that they had started negotiation with the government regarding full autonomy.
"For that reason we proposed to the government to announce a new pay scale for the BB," he said.
Making the central bank a full-fledged autonomous body needs administrative reforms.
Replying to a query whether the full autonomy creates any kind of lack of accountability, he said, "Obviously, full autonomy does not mean lack of accountability-there must be a process to make us accountable."