Economic uncertainty will keep us on our toes

The government is on track to meeting the International Monetary Fund’s tax collection target for March but may miss the mark in June.

A set of parallel initiatives need to be undertaken targeting the structural weaknesses of the gas sector and power sector development to ensure energy transition.

Three issues would be dictating the upcoming fiscal year’s budget, the last of the Awami League government’s present five-year term: the International Monetary Fund’s conditions, the persistently high inflation and next year’s national election.

Bangladesh’s preparation for LDC graduation would start in earnest with the International Monetary Fund’s 42-month loan programme, where one of the objectives is to overhaul the monetary and exchange rate policies to meet the needs of an open economy.

The International Monetary Fund would be watching the Bangladesh economy like a hawk, stipulating an extensive list of data reporting regularly as part of the conditions agreed upon for the $4.7 billion loan programme.

Bangladesh has averted a potential major crisis by reaching out to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a timely manner, said Kaushik Basu, a former chief economist of the World Bank.

Bangladesh has a low risk of external and overall debt distress despite higher external borrowing in recent terms, said the International Monetary Fund.

With the approval of a $4.7 billion loan by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Bangladesh easing much of the concerns regarding its economy, IMF Mission Chief to Bangladesh Rahul Anand answers some questions about the arrangement.

IMF loan cannot be the only factor behind much-needed structural changes

The prospective loan programme of the International Monetary Fund will prime Bangladesh for graduation from the least-developed country bracket and reach middle-income country status by 2031, said the lender’s top official.

Bangladesh’s $4.5 billion loan programme with the International Monetary Fund is expected to get the final approval on January 30, said the lender’s visiting top official yesterday.

There would not be any further negotiations on the $4.5 billion loan programme during International Monetary Fund’s deputy managing director Antoinette Monsio Sayeh’s forthcoming visit to Bangladesh.

International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Deputy Managing Director Antoinette Monsio Sayeh is due in Dhaka on January 14 for a five-day visit, to finalise the agreement for a $4.5 billion loan.

The core problems of our economy are rooted in the very nature of the country’s governance, which has long been neglected. 

The rise in the prices of goods has led to many people suffering from a silent famine.

This year was always supposed to be a celebration of Bangladesh’s economic progress with the opening of Padma bridge and Dhaka metro rail and 100 percent electrification.

Bangladesh economy was all set at the beginning of 2022 to get its growth momentum back after recovering from the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic. But, the start of the Ukraine war in February slowed the country’s joy run significantly, making it an eventful year to remember. Let’s see how 2022 was for Bangladesh.

The International Monetary Fund is set to tag three binding conditions and a host of structural reforms for the prospective $4.5 billion loan to Bangladesh, as the Washington-based multilateral lender looks to bring in lasting reforms in the country.

Time has come to make good on those plans.