Budgetary measures sought for underprivileged people

Bangladesh should extend support to the underprivileged people by incorporating relevant measures of welfare in the upcoming national budget, in a bid to help them tackle ongoing economic challenges, said speakers at a roundtable on Saturday.
It also should take initiatives to reform the tax regime and tame inflation to handle the economic crisis caused by the current global situation, they said.
For an inclusive and sustainable growth, the country must invest in employment generation and skill development alongside improving its education system, they added.
The experts made the comments at a pre-budget roundtable discussion, styled 'Economic Challenge and the Upcoming Budget for FY23', organised by financial daily The Business Post at its auditorium in the city's Tejgaon area.
Former adviser to a caretaker government AB Mirza Azizul Islam attended the roundtable as the chief guest.
In his speech, Mr Islam said, "Obviously questions are raised with the meaningful implication of figures presented in the national budget."
He suggested enhancing the capacity of the relevant agencies to properly spend the budgetary allocation. "I want to see a reflection of the government's intention in the budget to spend the allocation in a meaningful way."
Regarding the current upward inflation, Mr Islam said there was a limited scope to control it with the domestic move as it was happening due to global crises like the Covid pandemic and the war between Russia and Ukraine.
But there is no alternative to taking measures to help protect the impoverished people, he observed.
In this regard, the economist underscored the need for ensuring proper allocation of the money under social safety net programmes, excluding sham beneficiaries from the list, and taking steps to stop embezzlement.
Mr Islam also highlighted the need for reforming education system, creating jobs, increasing investment and improving business climate, for the sake of the country's economy.
"As a whole, ensuring good governance is also a must for economic development," he added.
Speaking on the occasion, former NBR chairman Dr Muhamad Abdul Mazid said usually there were many discussions before declaration of the national budget, but there was no such initiative to track the budget implementation.
"ADP implementation hovers around 45 per cent during the first nine months of the fiscal, which abruptly increases to 90 per cent within the couple of concluding months," he said, highlighting the need for undertaking initiatives to be implemented all the year round.
The hurried implementation in the concluding period also implies economic mismanagement which results in economic crisis, he added.
Research Director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Khondaker Golam Moazzem said the country's economic recovery from the pandemic was now being challenged by a huge gap in balance of payments amid the global crisis.
He underscored the need for taking comprehensive measures to stabilise the value of taka against US dollar, tame inflation, disclose real information on inflation, and end the unscrupulous hoarding.
Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Executive President Mohammed Hatem and former FBCCI president Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, among others, also spoke at the event.
The Business Post Editor Mohammad Golam Sarwar presided over the discussion, while its Executive Editor Nazmul Ahsan moderated the discussion.
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