The Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD) has emphasised prioritizing the restoration of macroeconomic stability and improvement of living conditions for low-income individuals by addressing inflation pressures in formulating the national budget for the upcoming financial year.
CPD discouraged the pursuit of ambitious goals like increasing gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita income, instead suggesting a focus on increasing revenue collection, allocating spending to priority sectors, reducing inflation, and providing financial assistance to those affected by price hikes.
These recommendations were highlighted in a press conference organised by CPD to discuss its proposals for the fiscal year FY2024-25 budget.
CPD Executive Director Fahmida Khatun said, “As always, in the first eight months of the current financial year, the government is lagging behind in revenue collection, and expenditure in the priority sectors. Meeting the overall target in the remaining six months requires revenue collection to reach around 54.4%, presenting an exceptionally challenging task."
She said the country may encounter a revenue shortfall of Tk82,000 crore.
“The government is under pressure on almost all indicators of the macroeconomy, including high inflation, exchange rate, and foreign exchange reserves. Inflation is hovering around 10% due to domestic and foreign factors,” Fahmida Khatun added.
She emphasised the need for realistic budgeting for the next year, considering the challenges faced in meeting macroeconomic targets.
She also stressed the importance of implementing major reforms for the medium and long-term restructuring of the economy through the budget.
CPD presented three specific recommendations, focusing on revitalising the overall economy rather than solely aiming for GDP growth.
These recommendations included increasing food production to control inflation, boosting incentives in agriculture, enhancing allocations for social security, education, and health, expediting the implementation of ongoing foreign-aided projects, and postponing projects with minimal progress.
