DHAKA, April 5, 2020 (BSS) – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today unveiled
the government work plan to overcome the possible COVID-19 impact on the
country’s economy, declaring an allocation of Taka 72,750 crore under a set
of stimulus packages.
“Earlier I declared a Tk 5,000 crore (emergency) incentive package for
paying salaries and allowances of export-oriented industries workers and
employees and today I am announcing four fresh financial stimulus packages of
Tk 67,750 crore,” she said.
In a nationwide televised address from her official Ganabhaban residence
this morning, the premier said with the fresh allocations, the total amount
of financial assistance would stand at Tk 72,750 crore, which is nearly 2.52
percent of GDP.
“I hope our economy will rebound and we could reach near the desired
economic growth, if the stimulus packages, the previous and the fresh ones,
could be quickly implemented,” she said.
The premier said the government simultaneously took four programmes under
the work plan to be implemented in phases categorized as “immediate, short
and long”.
“The four programmes are: increasing public expenditure, formulating a
stimulus package, widening social safety net coverage and increasing monetary
supply,” she said.
Highlighting the key aspects of the four new packages, the premier said the
first of the four packages involved Taka 30,000 crore, to be provided to
affected industries and service sector organizations as working capital
through banks as low-interest loan.
She said the commercial banks would provide the amount as loans from their
own funds to concerned industries and enterprises on the basis of bank-client
relations.
“The interest rate of this lending facility will be 9 percent, and the
concerned industries and business organisations will pay 4.50 percent
interest, meaning half of the interest of that loan, while the government
would pay remaining half to banks as subsidy,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said under the second package, small and medium enterprises
(SMEs) including cottage industries would get Taka 20,000 crore as working
capital.
She said a mechanism would be devised to reach the amount to the SMEs as
low-interest loans through banks which identically will disburse amounts to
the SMEs on the basis of bank-client relations while the government in this
case would bear the greater share of the interest amount.
“The interest rate of this lending facility will be 9 percent and the
concerned industries and business organisations will pay 4 percent interest
of that loan, while the government will provide the remaining 5 percent as
subsidy,” the premier said.
The fourth package, she said, was meant for enhancing Bangladesh Bank’s
Export Development Fund or EDF size from US$3.5 billion to $5billion to
facilitate raw materials imports under back-to-back LC.
The prime minister said this last package would result in adding an amount
of additional Tk 12,750 crore equivalent to $1.5 billion to the EDF while its
interest rate would simultaneously be brought down to 2 percent.
The existing EDF interest rate is 2.73 percent in line with current London
Interbank Offered Rate-LIBOR + 1.5 percent.
The prime minister said under the fourth package, the central bank will
introduce a new credit facility of Taka 5,000 crore as “Pre-shipment Credit
Refinance Scheme” and its interest would be 7 percent.
Sheikh Hasina said local products alongside the export sector would deserve
special attentions and supports to cope with the possible global and domestic
economic crisis caused by the pandemic.
“In this regard, I call upon all to boost production of local products and
raise their use,” she said.
The premier cautioned all concerned not to be indulged in any type of
corruption, irregularity and misuse taking the opportunity of this crisis.
“I want everybody to work with utmost sincerity and honesty. Taking the
opportunity (of the crisis), don’t to be indulged in any type of corruption,
irregularity and misuse and it’s my clear word,” Sheikh Hasina said.
She continued: “If we can do work properly, the people of any section won’t
endure any problem, and we’ve made this arrangement keeping this in mind.”
The prime minister mentioned that farmers, fishermen, weavers, blacksmiths,
potters, small traders, and others who are involved in various businesses
like poultry, dairy and fishing were worried about their loan and other bills
including electricity due to the present crisis evolved for the coronavirus
pandemic.
“But, we’ve taken various steps to remove their anxieties, and they don’t
face any problem in future and continue their business smoothly,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina went on saying: “I don’t want anybody to suffer and our
responsibility is to mitigate hardship of all … we’ve announced the
packages to achieve the goal and (I hope) everybody will get its results.”
The prime minister said as a nation the people of Bangladesh have a
wonderful strength of patience and capability to rebound fast by enduring
blows of any type.
“Nothing could suppress us as a nation which snatched the independence in
1971 in only nine months responding to the call of Father of the Nation
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and our aim is to advance further by
containing the everlasting messages of the Father of the Nation in our hearts,” she said.
Finance Minister A H M Mustafa Kamal, Senior Secretary of Finance Ministry
Abdur Rouf Talukder, Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Fazle Kabir also spoke at
the press conference, moderated by PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim.
PM’s Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus and Prime Minister’s Office (PMO)
Secretary Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah were also present, among others.
Sheikh Hasina elaborated the four programmes taken to cope with the
possible economic impact on the country due to the coronavirus outbreak.
A) Increasing public expenditure: Generating employment will be basically
given priority in public expenditure while foreign tours and lavish
expenditure will be discouraged. Since the debt to GDP ratio of Bangladesh is
much less (34%), so the higher public expenditure would not create any
pressure on the macroeconomy of the country.
B) Formulating a stimulus package: Some low interest credit facilities
will be launched through the banking system mainly to rejuvenate the economic
activities, keeping the job of the workers and employees as well as the
competitive edge of the entrepreneurs intact.
C) Widening the coverage of the social safety net: The coverage of our
existing social safety net would be further widened to fulfill the basic
needs of people living below the poverty line, day labourers and people who
are engaged in non-formal works.
Under the third operation, she said, the notable programmes are
distributing food materials free of cost, selling rice at Taka 10 per KG,
distributing cash among targeted communities, widening the coverage of the
old-age allowance, widow allowance and allowance for the women oppressed by
husbands to cent percent at 100 most poverty-prone upazilas of the country.
Other undertaken operations include speedy implementation of the programme
to build houses for the homeless marking the birth centenary celebration of
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
D) Increasing Monetary Supply: It is very much necessary to increase the
monetary supply to overcome the adverse impact on the economy.
Sheikh Hasina mentioned that the Bangladesh Bank has already reduced the
CRR and REPO rate to boost the monetary supply which will continue in the
future as per the necessity. “But, in this regard, our goal is that there
will be no increase in inflation due to monetary supply,” she said.
The prime minister said the fast spread of the coronavirus, huge pressure
on the health services, unprecedented lockdown and stagnant communication to
curb the pandemic have already started putting negative impact on the global
economy.
“The sectors and areas which are being affected are: industries
production, export trade, services sectors, especially tourism, aviation, and
hospitality sector, small and medium enterprises and employments and these
are experiencing a landslide fall,” she said.
Not only the supply side, she mentioned, the consumption and investment in
demand are also witnessing downward.
Sheikh Hasina said the IMF has already declared that the global economic
recession has started while the stock markets across the globe have witnessed
a fall of 28-34 percent over the last few weeks.
Citing an estimation of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD), she said the global growth could come down at 1.5 percent
if the recession persists long while a huge workforce across the globe is
feared to lose their work.
Sheikh Hasina said if the recession persists long, it is also apprehended
that the world is likely to face a great economic recession for the first
time after the World War II.
She said time has not yet come to specifically mention what type of
negative impact or what would be the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic
on the country’s economy.
The prime minister also listed some of the impacts of the COVID-19 on the
country’s economy which are as follows:
A) The import cost and export earnings in this fiscal year have witnessed
a 5 percent fall compared to the same period of the last fiscal year, and
this fall could further stretch at the end of the current fiscal year.
B) There is a possibility of not getting private investment at a desired
level due to the delay in implementation of the ongoing mega projects,
establishment of the economic zones and also delay in implementation of the
decision to reduce the bank interest rates.
C) The novel coronavirus will have a negative impact on the services
sector, especially hotel-restaurants, transport and the aviation sectors.
D) Like other countries of the world, it will also have an adverse impact
on the country’s capital market.
E) Due to the decline in global demand, the world fuel oil price has been
reduced by over 50 percent for which the inward remittance flow is also being
affected.
F) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) in their estimation said the economic
loss of Bangladesh could extend up to $3.2 billion due to the impact of this
deadly virus, but under the present circumstances, it is assumed that the
extent of loss could be much more.
G) The purchasing capacity of the low-income people could be reduced as
well as there could be disruption in the supply chain due to the long general
holidays affecting the production of the SMEs and hindrance in the transport
services.
H) The overall revenue collection in the current fiscal year (FY20) is
less compared to the budgetary target, and this could further increase the
budget deficit at the end of the current fiscal year.
I) The driving forces for attaining over 7 percent growth on an average
for three years and lastly 8.15 percent growth in FY19 were the strong
domestic demand and supporting revenue and monetary policy. As a result, the
GDP growth could be declined due to the negative trend of the macroeconomic
indicators.
The prime minister said the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared
the novel coronavirus as a pandemic as the deadly disease has spread across
the globe.
“So far, 202 countries and territories have been affected by the disease,
and over 70,000 people are being infected by it and more than 4,000 people
die every day,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said but by the grace of Allah and due to timely and proper
steps of the government, coronavirus infections did not take place
extensively yet in Bangladesh and the situation is under control here.
“When the coronavirus outbreak began in China in December last year, we
gave top priority to this issue,” she said.
The premier said the Diseases Control Unit of the Directorate General of
Health Services (DGHS) and the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and
Research (IEDCR) have jointly started work to this end.
“A control room was opened at the IEDCR and we started preparation to
tackle this disease,” Sheikh Hasina added.
Besides, she said, separate control rooms were introduced at the Prime
Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Health Ministry. “The overall situation of
coronavirus is being monitored, and programmes are being carried out through
these control rooms,” she said.
The prime minister said to contain the coronavirus and other contagious
diseases, the government has adopted the National Preparedness and Response
Plan for COVID-19, applying its experiences and following the guidelines of
the World Health Organization (WHO).
Mentioning that three-tier programmes have been taken under the plan,
Sheikh Hasina said the government is discouraging people to return home from
abroad and go abroad to prevent the spread of the lethal disease.
The authorities concerned are also immediately identifying the home
returnees infected with the virus to halt the person-to-person virus
transmission, she said, adding the government is providing proper treatment
to the people infected with coronavirus and patients.
Since January in 2020, Sheikh Hasina said, the three-tier programmes are
being implemented. “All the returnees from abroad are being screened through
thermal scanners and infrared thermometres at all airports, seaports and land
ports,” she added.
The premier said steps have been taken to keep the people having COVID-19
symptoms and suspects in quarantines. “Measures have also been taken to
distribute the health declaration and passenger-locating forms among the air
passengers before landing their flights,” she said.
The premier said the passengers, who have no COVID-19 symptoms and are also
not suspected, are advised to stay at home quarantines and “we ensure regular
follow-up with them”.
She said a national committee, led by the health minister, has been formed
involving representatives from different ministries, international agencies
including WHO and professional bodies affiliated with healthcare.
“Committees have also been constituted at divisional, district, upazila
and union levels,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina said till yesterday, a total of 70 people were infected with
coronavirus in Bangladesh while eight people died. “I pray for eternal peace
of the departed souls,” she said.
“Some 30 people returned home after recovery. And, those who died were in
the 70s and they were suffering from various complicated diseases, although
we don’t expect any death,” Sheikh Hasina said.
To contain the infections of coronavirus globally, the premier said,
lockdowns have been announced in different countries. “Apart from sealing off
borders in more than 100 countries, flight landing has been suspended in
almost all countries of the world,” she added.
The prime minister said general holiday has been announced for 17 days in
Bangladesh since March 26 last, while partial holiday has been declared in
industries and factories.
“Tourist centres and shopping malls remain closed, and public transport
services on roads, waterways and rail routes have been suspended and the
people have been instructed to stay at their homes and maintain social
distancing while going out of homes,” Sheikh Hasina said.
The prime minister urged the people to follow health codes properly and
celebrate the Pohela Boishakh, the first day of Bangla New Year, by staying at
homes.
“The cultural functions on the occasion will be staged through media,” she
said.
Mentioning that holy Shab-e-Barat is ahead, Sheikh Hasina called upon the
countrymen to pray to Allah by staying at homes so that they (people) stay
well and can advance further socioeconomically and the entire world is freed
from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing the press conference, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said
the Taka 72,750 crore stimulus package, announced by Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina, would facilitate all the businesses, industrialists, public and the
private sectors to help recoup the possible damages of the country’s economy
for coronavirus.
“This package will help the businessmen, industrialists, the public and
the private sectors to bring them back again on the road of dynamism,” he
said.
The finance minister expressed his firm belief that people from all
sections of the country like farmers, potters, fishermen, teachers and people
involved in the cottage industries and SMEs as well as in the hotel and
restaurants would be benefitted from this package.
“Our Prime Minister has brought all people of the country under this
package. Country’s people won’t lose their hope and believe that we’ll come
back to the normal situation again,” he said.
Kamal said based on her past experience, the prime minister announced this
huge stimulus package before the deadly COVID-19 could take a toll on the
country’s economy, adding that everybody is included in this package and none
will be excluded.
“I think that all our dangers will be gone away and once those are gone,
we’ll have to act fast without taking much time to have a turnaround so that
we can reach our desired goal,” he said.
The minister said since inflation is now hovering around 5.5 percent and
the government could not go for adopting a contractionary policy, so the
government would have to sit on the driving seat and would also have to
pursue the fiscal and monetary policy in a flexible way.
He also hoped that the GDP growth rate of the country would reach around 8
percent if the ongoing pandemic COVID-19 doesn’t persist long.
In this connection, he referred to the recent estimation of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) where the lending agency projected that the country’s
GDP growth would reach 7.8 percent in FY20 if the economy continues its
normal trend.
Highlighting the trend of some of the major macroeconomic indicators, Kamal
said the revenue collection witnessed an 8.15 percent growth during this
July-February period while the inward remittance flow was 20.05 percent
highest during the timeframe compared to the same period of the last year.
He, however, noted that the export earnings notched a 4.8 percent negative
growth during this July-February period due to slight fall in the performance
of the RMG sector.
Extending his heartfelt thanks to the prime minister for announcing this
huge package, Kamal said it was Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who awarded the
first stimulus package before the nation in 1997 when the South-East Asia
faced a financial debacle.
Again after assumption of his office in 2009, Kamal said Sheikh Hasina
also delivered a stimulus package before the nation to help overcome the
global economic recession.
“During that time, Bangladesh had set an example before the whole of the
world,” he said, adding that the prime minister rightly announced the
stimulus package this time perceiving the context.
Explaining the stimulus package announced by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,
Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Fazle Kabir said it will help the country’s
economy overcome the impact of COVID-19 and achieve the desired growth.
Referring to the BB’s different initiative, he said the central bank has
taken different programmes to prevent any unwanted liquidity obstruction in
the banking sector due to coronavirus outbreak.
As per the moves, he said, the central bank has increased the allocation
of some re-financing schemes for ensuring smooth money flow to different sub-
sectors of the liquidity economy.
The size of Export Development Fund (EDF) has increased to US$5 billion
from $3.5 billion while the interest rate of the fund would be 2 percent from
the existing 2.73 percent, he added.
The BB governor informed that the central bank has re-fixed the cash
reserve ratio (CRR) at 5 percent on bi-weekly average from April 1.
BB has also cut repo rate to 5.75 percent from 6 percent as part of
efforts to boost liquidity amid COVID-19 pandemic, he added.
He said banking activities are also remaining open in limited scale to
facilitate financial transactions for the people during the general holidays
declared by the government.
Fazle Kabir said the central bank has also kept open the Bangladesh
Automated Clearing House (BACH) to complete the inter-bank transactions for
ensuring various emergency services, including smooth supply of essential
commodities, emergency medicine and other services, for the people.
While speaking at the press conference, Finance Division Secretary Abdur
Rouf Talukder said they have made the groundwork for preparing this stimulus
package integrating the fiscal and monetary policy as directed by the prime
minister to face this unprecedented situation.
About the announced Taka 30,000 crore credit facility, he said normally a
recipient repaid his loan taken as working capital in four to six months.
Rouf said if the banks could manage this fund efficiently and the loan
recipients repay their loans in due time, then it would be possible to lend
up-to Taka 60,000 crore in two phases in a year from this announced Taka
30,000 crore credit facility.
The finance division secretary also opined that it would be possible to
give loan facility of over Taka 1,35,000 crore from the stimulus package
announced by the Prime Minister.
Since the commercial banks will bear the credit risk, Rouf said there would
be no moral hazard while the quality of the credit would be improved which
would eventually help improve the economic situation of the country.