Bangladesh government has given emphasis on ensuring quality of education and accordingly proposed highest budget allocation for education sector for the fiscal year 2019- 2020. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal will place the proposed budget for the next fiscal on June 13. According to finance ministry sources, the education ministry has sought Tk 61,097.75 crore in order to ensure quality education in the country, the sources said.
As the Awami League in its electoral manifesto gave utmost importance to making education time befitting, it has been continuing to provide satisfactory budgetary allocation for the sector since 2009. This allocation will be spent in developing the classrooms and updating the Technical and Madrasah Education Curriculum as well. The budget session of the national parliament is scheduled to kick off on June 11 (Tuesday) and the proposed budget will be formally placed on June 13 (Thursday). Primarily, the size of the estimated budget would be Tk 5, 23,190 crore, 18.1 percent of the GDP. And it is observed that expenditure will increase in the upcoming budget by Tk 58,617 crore. Sources concerned said, the budget for fiscal year 2019-20 is prepared with proposals to bring reforms in some vital areas like banking sector, VAT, reducing rate of Corporate Tax etc. Sector insiders said, this year the budget can be termed as reform- oriented because there will be massive reform measures in the proposal for the sectors like VAT, capital market, bank, savings bond, social safety net programmes and MPO-related issues etc. Sources concerned said, in a bid to face the capital inadequacy in the state-run banks, the government will keep an allocation of Tk 1500 crore in the coming budget. Earlier, in FY 2013-14, the highest allocation of Tk 5,068 crore was kept for facing the capital inadequacy in the public banks. Regarding budgetary measures, the Finance Minister had recently said, he will prefer the sectors like education, health, infrastructure development, and employment generation so that the process of comprehensive national and economic development can be upheld. Mainly power, gas supply, internet facility, road connectivity and developing villages in a planned way will be included in this programme. Besides, there will be a reflection of celebrating birth centenary of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Aiming to boost the country's growing real estate sector and the capital market, the government is going to provide huge stimulus to these sectors, said sources concerned.
Real estate sector investors blame that weak policy of the government had kept the sector stagnant in the past, but now the government is very much cordial to make the housing sector flourish.
Excessive land price, high registration cost of flat, and abnormal rate of interest on bank loan had pushed the sector to the verge of collapse, so considering the setback, government has now decided to provide some facilities to the sector in the next budget. REHAB sources said, high cost of registration and excessive registration cost despite having opportunity of whitening black money in flat purchase have discouraged the buyers, and at the same time the government is also being deprived of revenue. Sources said, the target of revenue earning has been fixed at Tk 3, 77,810 crore in the coming budget to meet the large volume expenditures which is equal to 13.1 percent of the GDP. The budget deficit may be Tk. 1, 25,293 crore. Experts opine that if the VAT Act is implemented from 1st July it will expedite the flow of revenue income in the next year, but the authority is very careful so that the no one is harassed in the way of implementing this act. Since assuming the office of Finance Minister in the fresh term, AHM Mustafa Kamal has been vocal on banking sector, especially with regard to NPL, interest rate cyber security etc, so it is expected that there will be some measures in this connection in the budget. Talking to Bangladesh Post, the Managing Director and CEO of Rupali Bank Limited, Ataur Rahman Pradhan said, the Finance Minister has already announced that no more classification of loan will take place, and he has already given a guideline in this connection, that has already started to be practiced and it is hoped that this will bring fresh dynamism.
"As per the direction, the crisis in the banking sector is being detected, an audit process also been started and I hope some positive changes will be experienced through all these moves", Pradhan added. This time also, the highest allocation will be made in the communication sector. Padma Bridge and rail link with Padma Bridge will be considered specially. Allocation of Tk 52,800 crore is being given under this head. 26.5 percent of main ADP is allocated in this sector.
