FY 2026-27 budget: Tk 4,401 crore proposed for EC as local polls near

The government has proposed allocating Tk 4,401 crore for the Election Commission Secretariat in FY2026-27, a nearly 49 percent increase from the Tk 2,956 crore initially set aside in the outgoing fiscal year.

A sweeping round of local government elections is expected to drive the bulk of the spending.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury unveiled the proposal today in the Jatiya Sangsad, as part of a Tk 9.38 lakh crore national budget for the coming fiscal year.

The allocation for the constitutional body rose by Tk 1,445 crore -- a 48.88 percent increase -- against the initial budget of the previous year.

The EC had earlier sought Tk 5,500 crore from the government, leaving a shortfall of over Tk 1,000 crore against its request.

The proposed funding surge comes against the backdrop of a growing electoral backlog. No local government elections have been held in more than two years, with the tenures of many bodies having already expired across Bangladesh's four tiers of local government -- 13 city corporations, 61 district councils, 500 upazila parishads, and 4,581 union parishads.

The government plans to hold local government elections in the current fiscal year, with the EC expected to launch the first round in November, beginning with Union Parishads.

Of the total 4,401 crore proposed budget, Tk 3,643 crore have been allocated for operating expenditure and Tk 757 crore for development expenditure.

Apart from its routine tasks such as updating the voter list and distributing NID cards, the EC has lined up 13 additional activities for FY 2026‑27.

These include conducting elections in two city corporations, four municipalities, 10 upazila parishads, and 10 union parishads. The plans also cover registering citizens from “zero” age up to under‑18 years and issuing NID cards; setting up a mini archive and library for NID records; and establishing a fully functional Disaster Recovery Site at the Regional Server Station in Cumilla, according to Demands for Grants and Appropriations (Operating and Development).

EC Senior Secretary Akhter Ahmed confirmed the link between the budget and the polls.

"Naturally, this allocation for the upcoming fiscal year is related to the elections of local government institutions," he told The Daily Star, reacting immediately to the proposed budget allocation.

He also said that the commission would make the best use of the allocated funds.

In the outgoing FY2025-26, the EC's initial allocation of Tk 2,956 crore was revised upward to Tk 4,346 crore to cover the costs of the 13th National Parliamentary Election and the referendum held on February 12.

Of the Tk 3,150 crore actually disbursed to the commission, Tk 2,256 crore was spent on the election and referendum. EC officials said the commission is set to return Tk 894 crore to the exchequer at the close of the fiscal year.