The government has released the second installment of cash incentives amounting to Tk 8.75 billion for disbursement among major exporters for fiscal year (FY) 2014-15.
The Ministry of Finance on Monday advised the Chief Accounts Officer of the Finance Division to release the fund in favour of the central bank to start disbursement of the money for a period from October 2014 to December 2014.
The local exporters have been advised to seek cash incentive by applying to the Bangladesh Bank through respective banks. They will receive the installment of the cash incentives against their exports during the period.
In the current fiscal, the government has decided to release a total of Tk 35.00 billion as cash incentive.
Of the Tk 8.75 billion cash incentives, the jute and jute product sub-sector will get Tk 1.375 billion in the second installment while the other sectors will receive the rest Tk 7.375 billion.
In the last fiscal, the jute and jute product sub-sector received Tk 5.50 billion cash incentives.
At present, about 14 export sectors are receiving cash incentive.
The sectors enjoying the benefits include among others apparel manufacturing industries, frozen foods and fish, leather products, finished leather, agro-based products, agro-processing industry, sugarcane waste, bone paste, potato, meat, poultry, hatchery egg, ship and bicycle.
Under the cash incentive programme, potato, halal meat and agro-products will get the highest 20.0 per cent cash subsidy.
The small and medium garment factories will get additional 5.0 per cent subsidy, while 2.0 per cent will be provided for new products and new market expansion except the USA, Canada and the EU.
The export-oriented textiles sector will get 5 per cent alternative cash incentives instead of customs bond and duty-drawback facility.
The products, which are made of elephant grass (hogla), paddy straw (khor) and sugarcane bark (akher chobra), will get cash incentive at the rate between 15.0 per cent and 20.0 per cent.
Exporters of bone dust and leather goods will get 15.0 per cent incentive, pet bottle, flakes, finished jute goods and products of light engineering sector will get 10.0 per cent.
Among the other sectors, frozen shrimp and jute yarn will get 7.5 per cent and ship export will get 5.0 per cent cash subsidy.
As per the circular, the government will take legal actions against the exporters who, after examining export documents, would be found enjoying extra cash incentives from banks.
The extra fund will be taken back from the exporters within short time through legal process.
In last fiscal (2013-14), the government allocated Tk 29.50 billion for 14 export sectors and Tk 5.50 billion for jute and jute goods for promotion of the sector.
In the last fiscal year, cash incentive was about Tk 29 billion.
The government earlier provided incentives under a stimulus package to the exporters for facing global recession in 2009, which is still running in the current fiscal year.
The government has introduced cash incentives for the leading export earners to help them stay competitive in the international market.
The cash incentives, according to experts, kept the country's export buoyant over the last several years despite the global economic meltdown.
But suspension of GSP by the US administration last year cast some adverse impacts with the country failing to achieve the export target in the last fiscal.
The country has failed to reach its export target by about 9 per cent during the first two months of the current fiscal.
According to EPB statistics, the country earned US$ 5.14 billion during the July-August period, which is 2 per cent higher compared to $ 5.03 billion for the same period of last fiscal year.
Tk 8.75b cash incentives released for exporters
Ziaur Rahman | Published: September 16, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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