Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury on Thursday began presenting the national budget for fiscal year 2026-27, proposing a record Tk 938,000 crore outlay, the largest in the country's history.
The budget presentation started at 3:00 pm during the second session of the 13th National Parliament, presided over by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram. The session began with a recitation from the Holy Quran before the Speaker invited the finance minister to place the budget.
The budget is the first of the BNP-led government since its victory in the February 12 national election.
In his budget speech, Chowdhury said Bangladesh had resumed its democratic journey following the 2024 mass uprising.
“In continuation of the one-and-a-half-decade-long struggle against fascism, Bangladesh once again began its journey on the path of democracy through the bloody mass uprising of students and people in 2024,” he said.
He added that a BNP-led government was formed with a two-thirds majority following a “free, fair and peaceful” national election on Feb. 12, 2026.
“Having been entrusted with the responsibility of serving as the finance minister of the government, I stand today in this august Parliament to place our first budget proposal,” he said.
At the outset of his speech, the minister paid tribute to the martyrs of the Liberation War and others who had made sacrifices for the country.
He also remembered those who lost their lives or were injured in the struggle for democracy since independence, including victims of enforced disappearances, killings, attacks, lawsuits and gunfire.
The proposed budget aims to advance Bangladesh toward a “trillion-dollar economy” through higher investment, increased employment, deregulation of business and trade, and human resource development.
The government has set a revenue collection target of Tk 695,000 crore for the next fiscal year.
With projected expenditure exceeding expected income, the budget deficit has been estimated at Tk 243,000 crore. The government plans to finance the gap through domestic and foreign borrowing.
