DHAKA, June 1 (Xinhua) -- The Bangladeshi government has unveiled a record 4 trillion-taka (about 49.41 billion U.S. dollars) national budget targeting an economic growth of 7.4 percent for the 2017-18 fiscal year starting in July.
The country's Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Thursday placed before the parliament the 9th annual budget of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ruling Bangladesh Awami League (AL) party government since 2009.
In his budget speech, Muhith said, "We continue to make progress in all major economic indicators. As per provisional estimates of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, by the end of current fiscal year, our per capita income will grow to 1,602 U.S. dollars which was only 543 U.S. dollars in FY 2005-06."
During the same period, he said, poverty and extreme poverty has been reduced to 23.2 and 12.9 percent from 38.4 and 24.2 percent respectively.
"Side by side, life expectancy rate has increased from 65.4 years in 2006 to almost 72 years now which, indeed, is an indication of our inclusive development."
Apart from this, he said Bangladesh position in socio-economic indicators like inequality, women empowerment, sanitation, mother and child mortality rate, population growth rate and social mobility has been strengthened further.
Muhith said the total outlay of the proposed budget for the next fiscal year 2017-18 (July 2017-June 2018) is 4,002.26 billion taka, up by about 17 percent over that of the original budget of the outgoing fiscal year 2016-17.
Muhith said the total estimated revenue will be 2.87 trillion taka. On the expenditure side, he said the size of Annual Development Program (ADP) for the next fiscal year will be 1,153 billion taka with human resources, agriculture, transport, power and physical infrastructure sectors getting the biggest chunk of money. Enditem
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