Govt to cut debt reliance, boost domestic revenue to address economic challenges: Khosru

Bangladesh faces three major economic challenges – an inherited fragile economy, low revenue collection, and rising expenditure due to the Middle East war, Finance and Planning Adviser Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has said.

“We aim to address these challenges by increasing investment, boosting employment, and raising domestic revenue,” he said today (1 April), while responding to journalists after a meeting with National Board of Revenue (NBR) officials at the Revenue Building in Agargaon.

He said the government aims to revive the fragile economy by creating an investment-friendly environment instead of relying on borrowing and printing money.

“The government is shifting its focus from a debt-driven economy to an investment-led one,” he reiterated.

The government will move away from excessive money printing to keep the economy stable, the adviser added.

“Strengthening the economy is essential to increase the tax-to-GDP ratio, and both local and foreign investment will be the main drivers of that strength,” he said.

To restore investor confidence, the adviser said frequent policy changes would be avoided.

“Policies will remain stable for a defined period to allow long-term planning,” he said.

“The government will move towards deregulation to ease investment,” he added.