The government has cut its economic growth target drastically by some 2.0 percentage points to only 8.0 per cent from its double-digit projection in the terminal year of the draft 7th Five-Year Plan, officials said Saturday.
Officials said they have slashed the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth target by a good margin in the upcoming 7th Five-Year Plan (FYP) as well as in the Perspective Plan amid recent internal and external shocks to the economy.
They said the General Economics Division (GED) will sit with the country's leading economists tomorrow (Monday) for consultations on the newly-prepared macro-economic framework of the draft 7th FYP, to be implemented from financial year (FY) 2015-16 to FY 2019-20.
The GED drafted the 7th Plan in a bid to take Bangladesh's economy to a new height following its Perspective Plan 2010-2021.
A GED senior official told the FE that they will take opinions of some leading economists on the newly-revised macro-economic indicators, projected to be achieved during implementation period of the 7th FYP.
"We have invited leading economists including Professor Wahiduddin Mahmud, Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Ahsan H. Mansur, Abul Barakat, Dr Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad, Dr M Taslim, Dr Mustafa K Mujeri, KAS Murshid of BIDS on Monday's meeting at the Planning Commission," he said.
Officials said the GDP growth in the next financial year FY2016 has been trimmed to 7.0 per cent in its Perspective Plan, a 1.3 percentage points down from the previous target of 8.3 per cent.
Besides, the GDP growth has been revised to 7.2 per cent, 7.4 per cent, 7.6 per cent and 8.0 per cent instead of 8.7 per cent, 9.1 per cent, 9.4 per cent and 9.7 per cent in the subsequent FY2017, FY2018, FY2019 and FY2020 respectively.
In the final year of the Perspective Plan, the government targeted a 10 per cent GDP growth. In the latest revision, the GED is yet to project any revised growth target for the FY2021, officials said.
"We will take suggestions from the economists at the meeting Monday on the macro-economic framework of the next five years in the draft 7th FYP. Their suggestions will be incorporated in the next FYP," said a senior GED official.
Another GED official said slower growth achievements in the last couple of years, largely under the impact of restive political situation, prompted the authorities to go for the downward revisions.
The GED is working to formulate the 7th FYP to be implemented between FY2016 and FY2020 as the period of the current 6th FYP will end on June 30 this year.
kabirhumayan10@gmail.com
Govt cuts 7th Plan GDP target to 8.0pc in terminal year
FHM Humayan Kabir | Published: June 14, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: June 13, 2015 23:40:43
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