Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury has noted that the national economy is navigating a series of tough challenges, with persistent inflation directly squeezing the purchasing power of everyday citizens.
Key domestic hurdles include a low tax-to-GDP ratio, a crisis of confidence in the banking sector, an urgent need to drive investment and job creation, and heightened global economic instability.
The minister made these remarks while addressing the grand finale of "Econothon 2026," a national inter-university economics competition held at United International University (UIU) in Dhaka on Saturday.
"We stand at a critical crossroads domestically," Chowdhury stated.
"Inflation is eroding household budgets, tax collection relative to GDP falls far short of our needs, restoring trust in banking is imperative, and expanding investment alongside employment remains our paramount priority."
Turning to global headwinds, the finance minister highlighted slowing world growth, elevated borrowing costs compared to the past decade, rising trade protectionism and tariff barriers, and volatile fuel and transport costs driven by geopolitical conflicts.
He added that climate change inflicts fresh economic damage every year.
As Bangladesh relies heavily on imports and export trade, these global shocks spill directly into local product prices, currency exchange rates, and export orders for domestic factories.
Reflecting on policy management, Chowdhury remarked: "Every day at the Finance Ministry brings surprise elements. We draft a budget based on certain assumptions, and then come fuel price shocks, foreign exchange pressures, floods, or turmoil in international markets. Looking at the global landscape, uncertainty has effectively become the new normal."
Outlining government priorities to tackle these pressures, the minister stressed restoring macroeconomic stability and price control, modernizing the tax system to be fair and technology-driven, instilling good governance in banking, and improving the environment for private investment.
He also emphasized maximizing efficiency in public spending across education, healthcare, and social safety nets.
Regarding Bangladesh’s graduation from Least Developed Country (LDC) status, Chowdhury affirmed that regardless of timelines, the economy must build genuine competitiveness rather than relying solely on trade preferences.
He concluded with a note on policy realities under pressure, telling student participants that policy decisions often must be made using incomplete data and under tight timeframes, all while maintaining accountability to the public.
"Hiding problems does not solve them; acknowledging a challenge is the first step toward resolving it," he observed.
