Muhith starts pre-budget talks today

Prior to the national budget for the fiscal year 2015-16, Finance Minister AMA Muhith starts his pre-budget discussions in the city today (Sunday).
On the first day, the minister will hold talks with economists and representatives from various research organisations and think tanks at the NEC Auditorium to share thoughts on the next year's budget, officials said.
Economists and representatives from private think tanks, including the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI), Economic Research Group (ERG), Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) and Bangladesh Economic Association (BEA) will take part in the discussion meeting.
The pre-budget discussions with experts, economists, business leaders and people from different strata will continue until the last week of May. The minister will prepare the budget in line with the recommendations to be put forward by discussants.
The ministry of finance (MoF) has already prepared a schedule of 11 pre-budget discussion meetings and most of them will take place at the NEC auditorium in city's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar and State Guesthouse Padma.
The finance minister is likely to place the budget in parliament on June 04.
According to ministry officials, the government plans to frame a Tk 2.91 trillion budget for the next fiscal year 2015-16 with 7.3 per cent GDP growth target. It will be the second budget of the Awami League-led government.
The size of the current budget is Tk 2.50 trillion.
Despite political uncertainty, officials said, the government is going to enhance the size of the budget, keeping in mind increase in salaries of public servants by 100 per cent which will take effect from the next fiscal year and the government needs additional Tk 22.953 billion for this purposes.
The finance minister is also expected to hold meetings with different parliamentary standing committees, representatives from NGOs, editors from different print and electronic media, senior secretaries and secretaries of different ministries and divisions as well as the members of Economic Reporters Forum (ERF).
Mr Muhith will hold the second pre-budget meeting with NGO representatives on April 07. He will sit with economists and civil society members on April 08. A pre-budget discussion with Channel i on agriculture and farmers' budget will be held on April 09.
The minister will also sit with secretaries and senior secretaries of different ministries and divisions on April 27 and 28 and with ERF members on April 29.
On May 10, the finance minister will hold talks with four parliamentary standing committees on finance ministry, planning ministry, public accounts and public undertakings. He will sit with the chairmen of various parliamentary standing committees on May 11 and 12 and meet with the editors of different print and electronic media on May 14.
mzrbd@yahoo.com