Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, professor and chairman of the development studies department of Dhaka University, talks to The Daily Star about whether the proposed budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year may help the foreign trade of the country amid the persistent dollar crisis

Addressing many of our economic problems is proving to be difficult not mainly for economic reasons, but because of political ones.

As per the plan, a person will have to deposit Tk 2,000 as tax to the state exchequer even if he or she claims an income that is below the threshold, which charges zero tax rate, said officials of the finance ministry.

The budget of Bangladesh has become an orphan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is now the foster father of it, said Debapriya Bhattacharya, a distinguished fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

The budget session of the 11th Jatiya Sangsad will start on May 31 at 5:00pm, said a press release of the Jatiya Sangsad secretariat.

The finance ministry has not proposed any allocation on dearness allowance for government employees in its budget for the upcoming fiscal year, according to an official.

The government is expecting $2.5-3 billion by June next year from multilateral lenders other than the International Monetary Fund to help the Bangladesh economy weather the storm caused by the Ukraine war.

Parliament today (June 30, 2022) passed the Tk 678,064 crore national budget for the fiscal year 2022-23, with the theme “Return to the Path of Development Leaving the Covid-19 Behind” to overcome the impact of coronavirus pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war on the economy.

The government can expect to save up to Tk 5,500 crore for the austerity measures taken so far to preserve the foreign exchange reserves and tame inflation, according to the finance ministry.

Withdrawal of the existing 5 percent advance tax on gold import has been proposed in the budget for fiscal 2022-23 to encourage import of the precious metal through formal channel and discourage its smuggling.

The government has proposed an allocation of Tk 82,745 crore to run its subsidy programme for 2022-23, an increase of 53.7 percent from this fiscal year’s original outlay, creating a challenge to macroeconomic stability.

Let’s consider, for the ease of understanding, that the government has proposed an expenditure plan involving Tk 100. In this

Although Bangladesh is witnessing a golden hour in terms of demographic dividend, a lack of decent employment opportunities in the country is leading to rising unemployment among educated youths, according to experts.

The tax-free income limit for individuals has been kept unchanged at Tk 300,000 for the next fiscal year. The threshold for women, senior citizens, individuals belonging to the third gender, physically challenged persons and wounded freedom fighters also did not see any change.

Over the last couple of months, various sections of society called upon the government to raise the tax-free income limit amid the rising cost of living.

The new budget provides nothing for the uncle next-door who has spent his life pinching pennies in a rented flat, nothing for the millennial slogging away 60 hours a week and still wondering how to pay for their second child’s school fees, nothing for the mother hesitating to buy beef for a special day.

The government plans to extend VAT exemption and offer tax holiday to all export-oriented goods and services in order to create new export sectors, diversify goods and explore new markets.

The proposed budget has not properly addressed the pressing issues – higher inflation and the US dollar crisis -- that are causing immense macroeconomic imbalances, said economists in their immediate reaction.

When reassurance was needed, he exuded panic.

The budget proposed in parliament yesterday is geared toward attracting private sector investment to create employment and expand businesses, but some proposals need to be reconsidered, said economists and businesspeople.