Considering global economy, Bangladesh going through ‘best time’
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has said Bangladesh’s economy is now in the best position in view of the present state of global economy.
“We are going through the best time of our economy. In view of the [current state of] global economy, we are in the best position -- moving forward under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,” he told journalists in Washington DC on Thursday.
The minister talked to journalists after holding a series of meetings with Executive Director of the World Bank for Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Bhutan, Aparna Subramani; India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman; and Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mitsuhiro Furusawa on the side-line of the World Bank and IMF Annual Meeting, said a press release.
In the past two decades, Kamal said, the world witnessed economic disasters several times. During the great economic catastrophe in 1997, he said, several countries in Asia, including Indonesia and South Korea, were in difficult position.
During the 2008 catastrophe, the finance minister said many countries, including the United States, were in challenging position, but even then, Bangladesh’s economy did not face any severity.
He mentioned that now another extreme situation is prevailing across the world and that is the so-called trade war.
“The impact of this ongoing trade war has led to a downward trend in global economy. China’s growth has dropped from 14.4 percent to 7, but Bangladesh’s economy is moving forward,” he added.
Kamal said Bangladesh’s impressive growth may seem like a myth, but it is the reality.
“The biggest contribution to this comes from the people of Bangladesh,” he added.
The minister said the World Bank and IMF have lauded Bangladesh for its progress in all sectors and they presented Bangladesh positively before the world.
Finance Secretary Abdur Rouf Talukder, Secretary to the Economic Relations Division (ERD) Monowar Ahmed and Alternative Executive Director of the World Bank Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan were present at the meetings.
Comments