Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association(BGMEA) has expressed satisfaction with the new budget of 2019-20 announced in the Jatiyo Sangsad on last June 13. Earlier the apparel manufacturers’ owners submitted 11 proposals including some facilities for the workers to the government but only two of those were reflected in the announced budget.
In a press conference convened by the BGMEA at a hotel in Gulshan on Sunday(June16) the organizations’ president Dr. Rubana Haque expressed this satisfaction. She also made the demand of more allocation in the garments sector at this time. The leaders of the BGMEA terming the budget as welfare oriented said that they were seventy percent happy with the proposed budget.
According to BGMEA sources, of the submitted 11 demands their two demands were partially met and in the budget it was mentioned that two would be met gradually.
Partial reflection of two demands:-
Though they submitted proposal of 2 percent subsidy on exports of garments, one percent subsidy has been proposed in the budget. However the organization demanded the rate of subsidy at 3 percent. Besides, regarding fire safety there was a proposal of withdrawal of custom duty on import on eight articles, but there in the budget it has proposed to reduce import duty at 5 percent on 5 articles. However in the budget it has been mentioned the complete withdrawal of taxes on natural gas, water and on electricity bills used in garments industry.
Not reflected:-
In export sector there was a proposal of additional exchange incentives at the rate of Taka 5 against per US dollar, to cancel the amendment of income tax ordinance 30 of 1984 implemented through Finance law of 2017, to keep the source tax of 0.25 percent unchanged on export, to reduce the corporate tax from 12 percent to 10 percent, to keep the profit out of tax net if invested further, to exempt 0.2 percent stamp duty on export bill, to keep the all goods and services out of VAT net and exemption from submitting returns, formulation of necessary schemes for the development of garments sector and to include the workers in the social safety net.
Assurances were given:-
The organization was given assurances that withdrawal of double taxation on the profit due to the shares in the capital market of the garments manufacturing companies’ shares and to make the bank interest rate to single digit from existing double digit in loan cases.