Increased allocations likely to meet ‘unmet’ electoral pledges
Vision-2021′, as spelt out in the Awami League’s (AL) last election manifesto, will largely shape the country’s national budget for the next fiscal year, the concerned officials said.
The Vision, which was highlighted before the last general election in 2008 in which the AL got a massive mandate of the voters, portrays its projection of the country’s future for the year, up to 2021.
The budget for the next fiscal will be the last one under the current five-year tenure of the present government, which will terminate later this year.
The Vision-2021 is considered now to be the main guidelines for all types of socio-economic development activities being undertaken by, or under consideration of, the government. The Sixth Five-Year Plan was earlier prepared, taking its main features into consideration.
Finance Secretary Fazle Kabir requested, through a letter, dated March 20, 2013, his senior colleagues in different ministries to keep in mind the key objectives of Vision-2021, while preparing their public expenditure programmes for the next budget.
He also underlined the need for making utmost endeavours to promote the cause of upgrading the status of the country to that of a middle-income one, by way of taking effective, pro-active measures to reduce economic disparity and accelerate the pace of poverty alleviation efforts.
The ministry of finance (MoF) has started the preparatory exercise for the next annual budget.
Finance Secretary Fazle Kabir urged his colleagues to provide an update on all relevant steps and projects taken in fiscal year (FY) 2012-13 and their outcomes so far. He also suggested for furnishing all relevant information in time about the annual development programme (ADP) for the next fiscal while providing inputs for the budget speech of Finance Minister AMA Muhith for the next fiscal.
The achievements of the government during the last four and a half years will be highlighted in a comprehensive manner in the next budget in efforts to make things clear to the people about what the government has done so far in redeeming its promises and pledges to them through its last election manifesto, according to sources.
The budget for the next fiscal is likely to be bigger in size than all earlier ones during the present tenure of the government, they said. Being the last budget of the present government in its current tenure, there will be increased allocations of funds to meet a number of its yet unmet electoral pledges, the sources indicated.
There will also be a greater emphasis on measures and actions to help improve further country’s present investment climate in view of the overriding need for raising the level and quality of investments to put the economy on a high growth trajectory in order to help elevate its status to that of a middle income country, the sources said.
Steps, they further added, will be taken under the next budget to increase investment: gross domestic product (GDP) ratio in both public and private sectors.
Infrastructural development projects in power and gas, communications and port sectors will receive priority, in the course of preparation and finalisation of budget for the next fiscal, the concerned circles observed.
Source: Financial Express
