‘Economy in negative state, recovery may take 2 years’

Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury on Saturday said that Bangladesh’s economy is currently in a negative state and may take around two years to recover fully.
He made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a 17-storey academic building at Chattogram Maa-O-Shishu Medical College Hospital in Chattogram city.
The minister said that, “We are passing through a very difficult time. Due to the Middle East war, a huge amount of money has been spent for oil and gas imports. Around Tk40,000 crore has already gone from the national budget for this purpose. “We are in a deep negative economic situation. First, we have to come out of this condition, then the economy will move forward. It will take around two years for the economy to recover.”
Blaming previous governments for the current situation, the minister said, “What we inherited from the past governments was minus, minus and more minus. There was nothing positive. Everything was negative and we now have to make it up.”
He alleged that the previous administrations had also left unpaid liabilities worth nearly Tk50,000 crore in the power and energy sectors. “They left without clearing many bills. We now have to pay those dues as well,” he added.
Despite the economic difficulties, the minister said the highest allocation in the upcoming national budget would be given to the health sector to ensure free healthcare services for the poor.
Khasru also alleged that most allocations in the health sector during the previous government were looted. “The incumbent government will not only allocate funds to the health sector, but will also monitor whether the allocations are being used properly,” he said. The minister further alleged that political influence in medical college admissions during previous governments had damaged academic standards.
“No one should be admitted without merit as political admissions destroy the quality of institutions,” he observed.
Highlighting the importance of maintaining standards in medical education, the minister said that the government is now working to strengthen universal healthcare, preventive healthcare and primary healthcare services.
The minister also announced that the government plans to introduce contractual arrangements with private hospitals for the treatment of poor patients due to limitations in public hospitals.
“If patients receive treatment there, the government will pay the bills,” he said.
He also stressed the need for establishing more medical technology institutes, saying a shortage of skilled medical technologists was preventing the effective use of expensive medical equipment in the country.