The government must focus on agriculture and healthcare in the upcoming national budget for the 2020-21 fiscal year to overcome the coronavirus pandemic, guests said at an online seminar on Monday.
South Asian Network on Economic Modelling (Sanem) organized the digital webinar titled "The Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Agricultural Economy of Bangladesh."
"Now we need a two-year recovery plan for the country's economy instead of the 8th Five Year Plan. The recovery plan is aimed at taking the economy back to the December 2019 state," said Prof Selim Raihan, executive director of Sanem.
The government must focus on agriculture, health sector and social safety net programs, even if it requires a wider budget deficit. They should not hesitate in deficit financing, he added.
The upcoming budget may have a higher deficit than in the last few years, he pointed out.
"It must also be ensured that only genuine farmers receive the government loans for successful implementation of the stimulus package," Prof Raihan added.
"The supply chain of agricultural materials has been disrupted due to the current crisis and the ongoing shutdown. Thus, farmers' access to agricultural materials and tools must also be ensured," Sanem executive director said.
Raihan welcomed the government's stimulus package, but opined that while transferring the aid to the poor, the policy should not focus on cash transfer as the only mechanism.
Prof Sayema Haque Bidisha of Dhaka University reiterated that agriculture must be prioritized in the upcoming budget.
"Government also needs to take proper initiative to ensure timely supply of agricultural inputs so that we can have enough crop to feed the people," Prof Sayema, also research director at Sanem, added.
She mentioned how Bangladesh Competition Commission could play an important role in ensuring that farmers receive fair price for their crops.
The Sanem panel also included Mahtab Uddin, Lecturer, Department of Economics, University of Dhaka, and Farazi Binti Ferdous, national consultant at FAO Bangladesh.
