Bangladesh Government
Bangladesh earmarks Tk 385 billion for agriculture, aiming for 10% annual growth by fiscal 2026
The Bangladesh government has earmarked Tk 385 billion for agricultural development over the next three years, targeting an average annual growth of 10% in the sector by the 2025-26 fiscal year.
This investment underscores agriculture's pivotal role in achieving food security and driving equitable economic growth, according to the 'Medium Term Macroeconomic Policy Statement (2023-24 to 2025-26)'.
Despite a diminishing share in GDP, agriculture remains critical for the livelihood of the majority, particularly in rural areas. To boost food production and resilience against adversities, the government's strategy includes developing high-yield and adversity-tolerant crop varieties, expanding mechanization and irrigation, and improving access to affordable inputs like seeds and fertilizers.
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The policy document highlights several initiatives aimed at modernizing agriculture through technology. These include increasing the use of surface water for irrigation over groundwater to conserve resources, incorporating renewable energy solutions, and employing remote sensing for crop monitoring.
The government also continues to support the sector with subsidies, financial incentives, and technological innovations to foster a sustainable and self-reliant agricultural framework.
Significant contributions also come from the fisheries and livestock sub-sectors, which not only bolster GDP—2.53% and 1.91%, respectively—but also provide essential protein sources and livelihoods for over 12% of the population. Achievements in these areas include self-sufficiency in fish, meat, and egg production, with milk expected to follow. Moreover, these sectors are vital for foreign exchange earnings through exports.
Looking ahead, the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries is set to launch development projects to enhance production capacities, adopt advanced management technologies, and improve conservation efforts, particularly for young hilsa fish ('jatka').
Water resource management is another focal area, given its importance to sustainable agriculture. Initiatives are underway to improve surface water availability through the excavation of water bodies and the enhancement of coastal afforestation, aiming to secure equitable water shares from transboundary rivers.
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Amid threats of substantial economic losses due to climate change—projected at a 6.8% reduction in GDP by 2030—the government has prioritized comprehensive strategies to mitigate these impacts. The Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan is designed to equip vulnerable sectors and communities with the tools to enhance resilience and stability against climate-related disruptions.
Through these multifaceted efforts, Bangladesh is taking decisive steps to not only safeguard but also advance its agricultural heritage in the face of evolving global challenges.
Govt in dilemma over raising power tariff or floating more bonds to cut losses
The government of Bangladesh is caught up in a dilemma in choosing the right option to reduce the gap between the cost of power production and revenues generated from sales.
“Top policymakers are divided over whether the government should go for increasing the power tariff further or issuing more bonds through the banking system,” said a top official at the state-owned Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB).
He said if the government wants to raise the power tariff, either it has to do it before Ramadan or after Ramadan - these are the questions almost every day that are being discussed at the policy level.
They are also analysing the impacts of floating more bonds to reduce the burden of soaring losses on the part of BPDB, he added.
Read: Retail power tariff hiked 5% to Tk0.19 per unit for lifeline consumers, Tk0.36 on average for others
According to official sources, currently, the production of each unit of electricity costs about Tk 12 while it sells at a rate of about Tk 6.7.
It means the government has to bear the brunt of Tk 5.3 per unit, a top BPDB official told UNB.
The BPDB’s Annual Report 2022-23 shows, the BPDB, as a single buyer, generated 87,024 million kilowatt hours of electricity in 2022-23 fiscal at a total cost of TK 98,646.42 crore.
Its per unit production cost was at Tk 11.33 while it was selling electricity at Tk 6.7 per unit incurring a loss of about Tk 4.63 per unit.
The bulk tariff was last raised by 8.06 percent to Tk 6.70 from Tk 6.20 per unit on January 31 with effect from February 2023.
Read more: Over 10,000MW power in 29 projects in the pipeline, despite yawning overcapacity
Against this, its revenues were Tk 50,858.25 crore, incurring a loss of Tk 47,788.17 crore, showed the BPDB Annual Report.
With this huge loss, the government has been in great trouble as it has to purchase electricity worth Tk 82,778.25 from private sector power producers while it generates electricity worth Tk 13,306.62 crore from its own generation plants.
The annual report also shows that the BPDB’s average per unit production cost from its own plants is Tk 7.63, while it is Tk 14.62 at the independent power producers or IPPs (private sector), at rental plants Tk 12.53, at public plants Tk 6.85 and imported power from India at Tk 8.77.
The government purchases electricity from the private sector and India in dollars.
Read more: Power generation capacity increased by almost 20% to cross 30,000MW in 2023
According to official sources, the government's cumulative outstanding bills have now jumped to about $5 billion, of which the backlog amount in the power sector is about $4 billion (about Tk 43,093 crore), and the remaining $1 billion is in the energy sector.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid also admitted the severity of the crisis.
“Actually the crisis is not of local currency. Somehow we can manage it. But the main crisis is the dollar. We’re not getting dollars from Bangladesh Bank as per our needs,” he recently told UNB.
He noted that the power and energy sectors need at least $1 billion a month to meet payment obligations.
Read: Govt to raise retail power tariff this month
In such a situation, the government recently introduced a number of bonds through Bangladesh Bank to facilitate the BPDB to clear some dues.
“Initially, we have floated bonds worth Tk 5000 crore and it may go up to Tk 12,000 crore,” said a BPDB official on condition of anonymity, adding that it will not be enough to cover the losses, although the government is providing subsidies on a regular basis.
“That’s why the government will have to go for raising power tariff further or introducing more bonds,” he said adding, if more bonds are floated, it may squeeze the private sector’s credit from the banking sector.
But a final decision on what they would do still remains pending.
Read more: Power, energy sectors are saddled with $5 billion outstanding payment amid dollar crisis: Sources
What the US State Department said regarding those arrested in Bangladesh
The United States has urged the Bangladesh government to ensure a fair and transparent legal process for all arrested individuals.
It also called on the Bangladesh government to allow opposition members, media professionals and civil society representatives to participate meaningfully in the country’s democratic process and civic life.
“We will continue to engage with the Bangladesh government to advance that point of view,” US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters at a regular briefing in Washington on January 30.
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Though international observers described January 7 election in Bangladesh as “free and fair,” the US State Department spokesperson said they did not find the national polls to be free and fair.
The US also expressed concerns over the arrest of political opposition members in the run-up to those elections.
Miller said US will continue to engage with the Bangladesh government to advance democratic principles, which are key to ensuring peace and prosperity for all Bangladeshis.
US says will continue to take steps to deepen partnership with Bangladesh
Democracies have weaknesses, but they attain maturity only through practice: Foreign Ministry tells diplomats
The government has said that Bangladesh’s democratic polity has reached a stage where smooth and peaceful transition of power between elected governments has been ensured without any undemocratic arrangement.
"Democracies have weaknesses, but they attain maturity only through practicing democracy," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a briefing note shared with diplomats stationed in Dhaka on Tuesday.
Although many leaders and activists of BNP were keen to participate, it is regrettable that its top leadership decided otherwise on the pretext of their unconstitutional demand for the provision of a caretaker government, the ministry conveyed to diplomats.
In 2011, Supreme Court of Bangladesh declared the unelected caretaker provision "ultra vires" (any deed performed beyond the scope of legal authority) and void as it conflicts with the spirit of democracy.
Read more: Australia urges Bangladesh govt to prioritise strengthening its democratic institutions
The Election Commission repeatedly called upon BNP to participate, and the EC was even willing to revise the election schedule if BNP joined.
BNP made this "irrational demand" as its principal political capital and chose to destroy the lives and properties of people, holding them hostage, said the government.
The state of horrific violence that BNP and its allies unleashed throughout the country is only a vivid reminder of their drills in 2001, 2013, 2014 and 2018, the ministry of foreign affairs said.
Since October 28, 2023, they set ablaze nearly a thousand public and private vehicles and over 200 establishments including police hospital premises and ambulances, vandalized nearly a thousand vehicles and many establishments including the residences of Chief Justice and other judges, caused injury to around 1,500 police personnel and around 500 civilians, attacked reporters and camera personnel, killed 24 individuals including two police personnel – one of them mercilessly beaten to death in broad daylight, the foreign ministry observed.
"They sabotaged our railway system, leading to tragic incidents claiming five precious lives including burning a mother and her 3-year-old son alive and leaving many others severely injured," reads the briefing note.
In the lead-up to the election, BNP "geared up its violence" in its efforts to spread fear and terror. On the preceding day of the elections, they carried out arson attacks on polling centres with a view to intimidating the voters, the ministry conveyed to the diplomats.
Read more: Foreign friends continue to send congratulations to PM Hasina on her election win
BNP called for a 48-hour nationwide strike to cut off the communication system and obstruct voters from traveling to their constituencies to cast their votes, it said.
The Benapole Express train was set on fire, killing four passengers, causing severe injuries to many, and burning the passenger train to ashes, it said.
The 12th Parliamentary Election of Bangladesh were held on January 7 in a "free, fair, impartial and transparent" manner with spontaneous participation of the voters.
The people of Bangladesh as well as the international community have witnessed that the Bangladesh Election Commission, an independent and empowered constitutional body, supported by the incumbent government, can effectively conduct free, fair and credible elections, the ministry said.
The 2024 polls have set a new milestone in the history of the journey of parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh, it said.
People of Bangladesh have demonstrated their unyielding resolve to a rule-based democratic system and peace, progress and stability through their active participation, the foreign ministry said.
"The incumbent government also manifested its unprecedented political commitment to take forward the democratic process, uphold the constitutional mandate, and ensure people’s right to vote."
Despite the calls to boycott, violence and persistent intimidation by the BNP, the people of Bangladesh reinforced their commitment to and aspiration for a peaceful and ‘Smart Bangladesh’ vision, said the government.
"This is a new paradigm in Bangladesh’s electoral history within the constitutional framework, based on trust, credibility, and impartiality in the election process in line with people’s aspirations," it said.
The Indian High Commission's representative, British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas, European Union Ambassador to Bangladesh Charles Whiteley, Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen, Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexander Mantytsky, UN Resident Coordinator in Dhaka Gwyn Lewis, and high commissioners and ambassadors from various other countries were present at the "meet and greet" where Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen spoke briefly. Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen was also present.
Read more: Canada disappointed that Bangladesh’s electoral process has ‘fallen short of’ democratic principles
Will continue to work with government of Bangladesh on priorities that characterise longstanding relations: EU
The European Union (EU) on Tuesday (January 09, 2024) said it will continue to work with the government of Bangladesh on the priorities that characterise their longstanding relations in the political, human rights, trade and development spheres including the country’s possible future access to the GSP+ preferential trade scheme.
"The EU strongly encourages all stakeholders to respect political pluralism, democratic values and international human rights standards and to engage in peaceful dialogue," reads the statement issued from Brussels.
It is essential that the media, civil society and political parties can carry out their work without censorship or fear of reprisals, said the EU.
Read more: Commonwealth SG congratulates PM
The statement by the High Representative on behalf of the European Union on the parliamentary elections has taken note of the outcome of the Parliamentary elections, which were held in Bangladesh last Sunday.
It reiterated that the long-term EU-Bangladesh partnership is underpinned by the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
The EU regretted that not all major parties participated in this election.
The EU welcomed the agreement of the authorities to make public the upcoming report and recommendations of the EU Election Expert Mission.
Read more: Happy with people’s verdict; no reason to worry about US, UK statements: Foreign Minister
"In the same spirit of transparency and accountability, we call upon the relevant authorities to ensure a timely and full investigation of all reported election irregularities," the statement reads.
The EU condemned the acts of violence that occurred during the electoral period and urges everybody to refrain from violence in the post-election period.
"It is also key that the rule of law, judicial independence, due process and the right to peaceful assembly are respected and upheld in this period and beyond. In this regard, detention of opposition figures is highly concerning," reads the statement.
Read more: Scottish MP congratulates PM Hasina on re-election, praises election process
UN review on human rights on Nov 13: Bangladesh govt prepares to highlight efforts
The government has taken preparations to highlight its efforts as Bangladesh's human rights record will be examined by the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group for the fourth time on November 13.
The review meeting, to be held in Geneva, will be webcast live.
Bangladesh is one of 14 states to be reviewed by the UPR Working Group during its ongoing session from November 6 to 17, 2023.
Also read: UN rights body not 'correctly' informed on recent violence in Dhaka: Momen
Bangladesh’s first, second and third UPR reviews took place in February 2009, April 2013, and May 2018, respectively, said an official.
Usually, Law Minister Anisul Huq and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam, along with senior officials, join the review.
The law minister is likely to lead the Bangladesh delegation this time around as well.
The UPR Working Group comprises the 47 member states of the Human Rights Council.
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However, each of the 193 UN member states can participate in a country review.
The documents on which the reviews are based are:
1) National report — information provided by the state under review.
2) Information contained in the reports of independent human rights experts and groups, known as the Special Procedures, human rights treaty bodies, and other UN entities.
3) Information provided by other stakeholders including national human rights institutions, regional organizations, and civil society groups.
The UPR is a peer review of the human rights records of all 193 UN member states.
Since its first meeting in April 2008, all 193 UN member states have been reviewed thrice.
During the fourth UPR cycle, states are again expected to spell out steps they have taken to implement recommendations posed during their previous reviews which they committed to follow up on and highlight recent human rights developments in the country.
Universal Periodic Review
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique mechanism of the Human Rights Council that calls for each UN member state to undergo a peer review of its human rights records every 4.5 years.
The UPR provides each state the opportunity to regularly:
1) Report on the actions it has taken to improve the human rights situations in their countries and to overcome challenges to the enjoyment of human rights.
2) Receive recommendations – informed by multi-stakeholder input and pre-session reports – from UN member states for continuous improvement.
Established in March 2006 by the UN General Assembly in resolution 60/251, the UPR is designed to prompt, support, and expand the promotion and protection of human rights in every country.
Also read: UN rights body urges 'peaceful, inclusive, safe environment' ahead of election
As a constitutional democracy, Bangladesh continues to remain "fully committed" to protecting human rights for all.
Under the government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh has been adopting progressive policies to realize a better society for all where fundamental human rights, the rule of law, equality, and justice prevails, officials said.
Bangladesh considers all human rights to be universal, indivisible, interrelated, interdependent, and mutually reinforcing.
Since the 3rd cycle of Universal Periodic Review, the government of Bangladesh continued to adopt legislative and policy reforms, "enhance" democratic institutions and accountability mechanisms to realize the aspiration of “a society in which the rule of law, fundamental human rights and freedom, equality, and justice, political, economic and social, will be secured for all citizens” as pledged by the constitution.
Govt will brief diplomats, UN agencies today on current situation in Bangladesh
The government of Bangladesh will brief diplomats stationed in Dhaka, representatives of UN agencies and international organizations on the current situation in Bangladesh this afternoon (October 30, 2023).
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen will brief the diplomats at state guesthouse Jamuna at 4 pm.
Senior Cabinet members and officials of the government will attend the briefing.
Read more: EU, its Member States “deeply saddened” to see loss of life, violence in Dhaka
Govt aims to collect 11.2% of GDP in taxes by FY 2025-26
The government aims to collect total revenue amounting to 11.2 percent of GDP by the end of the 2025-26 fiscal, according to the Medium Term Macroeconomic Policy Statement (2023-24 to 2025-26) of the Finance Division under the Finance Ministry.
It said that Bangladesh has consistently maintained an expansionary fiscal stance keeping a moderate budget deficit—usually around 5 percent of GDP—to foster economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve social outcomes.
However, the tax-GDP ratio in Bangladesh is significantly lower than its peers and hence, the government has taken several initiatives to improve revenue collection.
Yet, it said, the fast pace of GDP growth has made it challenging to increase the ratio.
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The measures that have been undertaken are expected to gradually improve revenue collection by increasing both the tax volume and the number of taxpayers.
The Statement said that the foremost objectives of the public expenditure policy are to stimulate private investment through building infrastructures and improving the business climate, creating employment opportunities, supporting low-income population through social safety net programs, and reducing poverty through ensuring efficient redistribution of wealth and thus ensuring inclusive development.
With the advent of the Covid-19 outbreak, the government started to focus on saving lives while keeping the living standards from falling.
To do this, it mentioned, the Government emphasised on retaining jobs, providing income support, keeping supply chains active, reviving the rural economy, and ensuring food supply.
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For this, the government increased spending and implemented comprehensive recovery programs consisting of twenty-eight stimulus packages.
The stimulus efforts worked well and as a result the economy returned to a high growth trajectory fast while other countries continued to struggle.
However, the Russia-Ukraine war has again posed considerable risks and to mitigate the risks the Government has been pursuing a policy to rationalise public expenditure to stimulate economic growth by inducing domestic productivity growth.
While managing the economy to maximise welfare and development, the government is expected to maintain a budget deficit of around 5 percent of GDP over the medium term.
Historically, the size of public expenditure has been low relative to GDP in Bangladesh because of various limitations in the process of revenue collection and budget implementation.
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To improve the situation, the government has undertaken certain strategies to increase public expenditure.
The target of increasing public expenditure has been set to around 16.2 percent of GDP in FY 2025-26.
Moreover, the government is pursuing the Public Financial Management (PFM) reforms process to achieve this target.
To improve overall public service delivery, financial control of budget allocations, real-time monitoring of budget execution, and integration of recurrent and capital spending, implementation of the PFM Action Plan (2018-23) is ongoing, and revised PFM Reform Action Plan (2024-2028) has recently been formulated.
Under the PFM reforms, pension automation and E-challan automation systems have been introduced with the help of iBAS++ software.
This system continues to play a significant role in simplifying the budget management process. At the same time, all beneficiary programs are being brought under the Government to Person (G2P) payment system with the help of the iBAS++ software, which brings greater transparency in government expenditure management.
In addition, all government allocations from government institutions as well as all semi-government, autonomous, and state-owned enterprises, are being brought under the Treasury Single Account (TSA) through the iBAS++ system in the medium term.
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Momen asks visiting congressmen whether US govt would step down prior to election there
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Sunday (August 13, 2023) conveyed to visiting US congressmen Ed Case and Richard McCormick that there is no scope for reaching any consensus as BNP wants the government to step down.
He conveyed the message when the congressmen wanted to know whether there is any way to reach consensus with the opposition.
Momen also asked them whether the US government would step down prior to the election there. “Certainly not,” Momen said, adding that, “Will you sit in discussion if there is such a demand? Certainly not.”
Read more: Foreign observers are welcome during Bangladesh's upcoming elections: Momen tells Swiss envoy
AL always fulfills election pledges made to the nation: PM Hasina
Prime Minister and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina today (January 14, 2023) firmly reiterated that her party always fulfills pledges made to the nation ahead of national elections.
“Before every election, Awami League places its election pledges, and Awami League always fulfills its election pledges,” she said.
The Prime Minister said this while delivering her introductory speech at the joint meeting of the AL Working Committee, National Committee and Advisory Council at her official residence Ganabhaban.
She said that the government is working for the country and its people as per its election pledges.
Also Read: Foreign observers are welcome during next general election: PM Hasina tells British MPs
“We work for the welfare of the nation and people are benefiting from the results,” she said.
Coming down heavily on a section who “always criticizes the government unnecessarily”, she said that the development of the country does not make them happy.
Regarding corruption, she referred to her recent speech at the Parliament — asking to give her specific information on where the corruption is happening.
“Give me information, and I will take action. This won’t just be lip service,” she said.
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Sheikh Hasina said that the discussion on corruption is coming from those who are corrupt and turned Bangladesh into “a champion in corruption” during their regime.
“Or doing microcredit business to overburden people with high interests against their loans — forcing them to leave their houses or commit suicide,” she said.
She mentioned that through the ‘My House My Farm’, people won’t need to take loans from the microcredit lenders with high interest rates.
Briefly describing the development activities of the government, she said, “Through developing every sector of the country, we have been able to reduce the poverty rate and generate employment.”
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“Anyone can remain unemployed if that person wants to remain so, but there is no scope to remain unemployed as we have created so many opportunities,” she said.
In this connection, she mentioned the freelancing opportunities across the country through which youths can earn money from their rural homes.
In the future, she said, the country’s exports will include food items and processed food, digital devices, and small mechanical items.
“We will be able to increase exports through the investments that are coming into our one hundred economic zones across the country,” she added.
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She also said that due to the pragmatic and timely steps of the government in the last 14 years, people are now enjoying a better life.