The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stated that economy Bangladesh is on the right track, citing the government's various measures to address macroeconomic challenges.
Krishna Srinivasan, Director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Division (APD) said this at a press conference on the 'Economic Outlook for Asia Pacific' on the occasion of the annual meeting of the World Bank Group and the IMF on Friday (October 13).
"I think the economy is on the right track to meet program objectives, bring inflation under control and face macroeconomic challenges in a tough global environment," Srinibashan said.
In response to a question from journalists, Krishna Srinivasan said that the authorities in Bangladesh have taken important steps to deal with macroeconomic challenges. Srinibashan said they tightened monetary policy to reduce inflation and allowed flexible exchange rates.
Srinivasan emphasized on increasing revenue collection to help achieve goals in both development and infrastructure. Srinibashan mentioned that every country in the region including Bangladesh is facing challenges due to the global crisis.
He said every country must redouble its efforts to advance growth-enhancing reforms. He also said that if the government's revenue ratio increases from a low level, there will be an opportunity to spend more if necessary to meet important needs like education and infrastructure while keeping government debt under control.
He said strengthening multilateral and regional cooperation and mitigating the effects of geo-economic fragmentation are critical to Asia's economic outlook in the coming years.
To that end, reforms that reduce non-tariff trade barriers, enhance connectivity and improve the business environment are essential to attract more foreign and domestic investment in the region, he said.