National budget for 2023-24 fiscal year to be pro-poor: Kamal

The national budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year will be pro-poor, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said on Thursday.

While talking to journalists at his Gulshan residence in Dhaka, he said there will be continuity in the national budget to maintain the country’s overall economic growth and development.

The finance minister is set to place the biggest-ever national budget of Tk 7.61 lakh crore for 2023-24, in the parliament this afternoon.

This will be the 5th consecutive budget presented by the finance minister and the last of the current Awami League government.

The size of the social safety net will be widened in the upcoming budget and the government will be successful in implementing the budget, said the finance minister.

Kamal said the countrymen will not be cheated by the budget and the Awami League government does not want to achieve anything, ignoring the people's interest.

The national budget has been designed considering the benefit of the country’s poor people and the proposed budget will ensure benefits for the government and people as well.

The session began around 5 pm with Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair.

The budget has been designed giving a major focus on containing inflation, generating jobs, efforts towards building a ‘Smart Bangladesh’ and addressing the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR).

President Mohammed Shahabuddin convened the 23rd session of the parliament exercising the power bestowed upon him as per the clause (1) of article 72 of the constitution.

The government this time is eying to attain a growth rate of 7.5 percent in the next fiscal year (FY24) while to contain the inflation rate around 6.5 percent.

The total investment target in the next year will be 33.8 percent of GDP.