Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury has said Bangladesh’s talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a new loan programme went well. He said the IMF expressed satisfaction, taking into account Bangladesh’s economic progress and the current global situation. Banking reform, recapitalisation, raising the tax-to-GDP ratio and macroeconomic stability were among the subjects discussed. Although the IMF has observations on some points, the government hopes they can be resolved through discussion.
The finance minister said this to journalists in Bangkok, Thailand, on Thursday after a meeting with Nigel Clarke, deputy managing director (DMD) of the IMF.
Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said Bangladesh’s teams had held long talks with the IMF over the past few days, and Thursday’s meeting was based on the information and progress from those talks. The IMF had shown a positive attitude to the progress of Bangladesh’s economic activity since the budget.
He said the IMF considers the country’s progress satisfactory given the economic situation Bangladesh inherited and the present state of the world, especially the effects of the war in the Middle East. But the fund has observations on some matters, among them banking sector reform and raising the tax-to-GDP ratio.
“They have observations on some points. We agree on many things. Many problems have already been resolved. The remaining points will be discussed. It is natural to have observations. We have observations on various matters too. It is possible to reach solutions on these through discussion,” the finance minister said.
Asked about the new programme, he said it had been discussed with the IMF and the talks were moving forward positively. They would continue in the coming days.
He said the IMF is pleased with the progress Bangladesh has made despite the current global situation. The government has taken up various programmes to fulfil the pledges in its election manifesto, and wants to work in partnership with the IMF, the World Bank and other multilateral development partners to carry them out.
Asked about the talks on recapitalising the banking sector, the finance minister said the meeting discussed bank recapitalisation, the tax system and macroeconomic stability among other things. Overall the meeting went well, and both sides are keen to work in partnership.
Asked whether the IMF had questioned the credibility of Bangladesh’s reforms, the finance minister said it had not. He said the new programme had been discussed, and talks would continue on implementing the conditions it will carry. Some matters may need to be settled by compromise, but there is nothing to worry about.
Bangladesh’s relationship with the IMF is not limited to a single loan programme, the finance minister said. The government also wants to work in partnership with the World Bank and other multilateral institutions, whose cooperation is important to moving the economy forward.
Asked about the government’s economic strategy, he said the talks would not have come this far without one. The government is continuing talks with development partners precisely to move Bangladesh’s economy forward.
The finance minister expressed hope that if the current talks continue, Bangladesh’s cooperation with the IMF, the World Bank and other multilateral institutions will grow stronger, making it possible to make progress on economic stability, financial sector reform and future development plans.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report