Projected fivefold rise in losses demands proper response

The government needs to provide guarantees against an increasing amount of loans of state-owned enterprises every fiscal year, especially for power generation, fertiliser and fuel imports, and aircraft purchases.

The highest loss, at Tk 6,118 crore, was incurred by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) in July-April of the fiscal year. Its provisional loss was Tk 11,163 crore in the full year of 2022-23.

State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Bangladesh will likely incur collective losses of Tk 14,703 crore in the coming fiscal year, according to the finance ministry.