Bangladesh has unveiled a $16.5 billion budget for the next fiscal year
-- the first budget of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's new
administration.
Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith unveiled the spending plan to
parliament Thursday, saying the global recession had hit Bangladesh's
economy hard on three fronts: exports, imports and remittances. He said
the government has vowed to create jobs and raise civil servants' pay
as it works on initiatives to ease the impact of the economic downturn.
The finance minister also told lawmakers he expected the gross domestic
product to grow at least 5.5 percent during the fiscal year that will
end in June of 2010.
Opposition party lawmakers were not present for Muhith's speech. They
are continuing a boycott of parliamentary proceedings over a seating
arrangement dispute.
Prime Minister Hasina took office in January. An army-backed interim
government had ruled Bangladesh since 2007, when the military
intervened to end violence between supporters of Ms. Hasina's Awami
League and the rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party.