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Download PDF Eminent economist and former adviser to a caretaker government Prof Wahiduddin Mahmud has said the government should take steps to restore confidence in the businessmen instead of engaging law enforcement agencies in the market monitoring.
“We have suggested the government to make a buffer stock of rice to manage the crisis and it’s very possible,” Prof Mahmud said while talking to the journalists after a meeting of the Consultative Committee on Economic Policy, Management and Reforms yesterday.
He said politics and economics should not be seen separately. “So, any decision should be made considering its political and economic impacts… How to address the impacts on the poor section when the adjustment is made in the prices.”
Bangladesh Bank Governor Salehuddin Ahmed, FBCCI Administrator Syed Manzur Elahi, former adviser to the caretaker government Sultana Kamal and NBR Chairman Abdul Majid also attended the meeting held in the NEC conference room at the planning ministry.
In the meeting, they suggested the caretaker government not to engage the law enforcement agencies in the market monitoring drive as they think it might erode the confidence of businesspeople.
Instantly disagreeing with the proposal, Finance Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam said the government will continue its monitoring in the market involving the law enforcement agencies, particularly the joint forces comprising army, Rab, BDR, police and other forces.
After the meeting, the finance adviser told the press that the government might go for some adjustments in the prices of different products, including petroleum and fertiliser, as such suggestions came from the economists.
He noted that in any adjustment, some are benefited and some are losers.
“But the government tries to do the adjustment keeping an option so that the poor won’t be affected. Their interest will be looked into through a mechanism. Assessment of broader public interest will be the main focus.”
On the issue of recent price hike of essentials which warranted the market intervention, the finance adviser said the meeting tried to ascertain why this instability on the market, whether it’s for supply-demand mismatch or for the present monetary policy.
“We have felt that monetary policy is on the right track and now focus should be on the supply-side management,” he told the journalists.
January 21st, 2008 at 8:50 pm
TO YOU ALL ECONOMISTs.
Bangladesh is a very needy country.Our basic necessities are food and shelter.We need to feed miilions of starved people.
Our first need isto strengthen Agricultural Economy.
We need fertile land, support of automation to help improve farming by both very poor small farmers as well as large farmers.
The Govt must allocate a generous funds /borrow from world banks to help every single poor farmers.
Help them with automated agricultural equipment &
money they need free of interest.
Our fertiled lands became unfertiled by the wrath of ALLAH because of our sin.Robbing & killings & corruption of bygone leaders.Develop ALLAH fear & honesty.
Then we can concentrate in manufacturing economy.
the factory workers must ba given due dignity and
profit sharing to maintain morale of each worker.
Then we create an atmosphere in School & colleges to teach Arabic & English language along with the
developing skills in various trade & techical sectors enabling to suuply high skill labour force to various countries of the world.
I fervently hope these will help us develop a gradual national economy to feed & shelter the
suffering people of Bangladesh.
Thank you.