Stunned by lack of economic roadmap: Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya

Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Distinguished Fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and Convenor of the Citizen’s Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh, has expressed surprise over the government’s failure to provide a clear roadmap or medium-term planning for economic reform.

“I am stunned that the government has not laid out any economic roadmap. There is no medium-term plan. This became particularly evident to me during last month’s investment summit,” he said in an interview with a national daily ahead of the upcoming budget.

Dr Debapriya added, “Many participants at the summit asked me what policy framework underpins the government’s statements. They could not find any coordinated document detailing policies on taxation, investment, repatriation of earnings, or export incentives.”

Lack of coherent economic vision despite reform rhetoric

The economist further remarked, “Despite much talk of reform, we have not seen an integrated economic plan from the interim government. Though several committees and task forces were formed—including the white paper committee—we are yet to see any outcome from these initiatives.”

Budget lacks policy clarity

On the current budget, Dr Debapriya said, “This government has essentially continued with the outgoing regime’s budget. It is unclear on what policy basis the current budget was revised. We don’t know if there has been any move to reduce dependence on indirect taxation, or what principles have guided decisions around subsidies or interest payments.”

He also pointed to discrepancies in the Annual Development Programme (ADP): “In our white paper, we noted that nearly 40% of the ADP is fictitious. We are in the dark about the criteria for revising the ADP—what mega projects were dropped, which had cost revisions, and whether token allocations of Tk100,000 or Tk200,000 made for political reasons have finally been removed from the ADP.”

Dr Debapriya added, “Since government expenditure will be lower both in absolute terms and as a share of GDP in the upcoming budget, there should have been clarity on the rationale behind such reductions. Instead, we remain confused about the government's economic planning.”

Disconnect between budget and reform

He also criticised the disconnect between reforms and the budget: “The reforms underway in the energy sector, banking, and tax administration have no clear link to the budget. At one point, the government imposed VAT on essential goods only to withdraw it shortly afterwards. Whether such reversals will continue, or whether the government plans to offer tariff concessions in response to retaliatory tariffs from Donald Trump’s administration, remains unclear.”

“There appears to be a lack of internal coordination in preparing the budget,” he concluded.

Investors lose confidence amid policy inconsistency

Dr Debapriya observed that domestic investors, like their foreign counterparts, are increasingly concerned about abrupt policy changes. “Investors are worried whether the policies being introduced by the interim government will endure. That concern is amplified by the government’s failure to communicate any medium-term plan, economic manifesto, or coordinated reform agenda. There is no procedural assurance of policy continuity, as there has been little public consultation—especially with political leaders.”

“While the government has involved political figures in discussions around some reforms, they have been entirely excluded from the economic reform agenda,” he noted.

“We’re already seeing the consequences—recently, a revenue ordinance caused a standstill between the National Board of Revenue and port authorities. The stock market is also experiencing major turbulence.”