Bangladesh is working on a new economic model aimed at transforming the country into a one-trillion-dollar economy by 2034, according to Prime Minister’s Adviser on the ministries of Finance and Planning Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir.
He made the remarks while speaking at a roundtable discussion titled “Budget for a Crisis Moment 2026–27” held at the ATM Shamsul Haque Auditorium of the CIRDAP International Conference Centre in Dhaka, organised by the online platform Chaarcha.com.
Dr Titumir said the government’s approach is guided by a vision of a “Bangladesh for all”, where the benefits of economic growth are shared across all sections of society. He said the proposed model would be supported by administrative reforms, reduced bureaucratic complexity, and policies aimed at creating equal opportunities for both domestic and export-orientated industries to encourage investment.
He also said a Tk 60,000 crore restructuring package is being prepared to revive closed industrial units. Alongside this, efforts are under way to strengthen agriculture through improved water resource management and to improve efficiency in health, education, and grassroots service delivery.
The discussion was attended by State Minister for Planning Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki, along with economists, business leaders and policy experts.
Chairman of Policy Exchange Bangladesh Dr M Masrur Reaz, Managing Director of Apex Footwear Syed Nasim Manzur, researcher and rights activist Maha Mirza, former Finance Secretary Muslim Chowdhury, BKMEA President Mohammad Hatem, ICMAB President Kawser Alam, and Dean of the School of Business and Economics at North South University A K M Waresul Karim also took part in the discussion. The session was moderated by Chaarcha Editor Sohrab Hossain.
Speakers stressed the need for broad economic reforms to address inflation, weak investment, unemployment and global economic uncertainty. They called for modernisation of tax administration, improved productivity in agriculture and industry, stronger financial sector governance and long-term policy stability to support sustainable growth.
In his remarks, Syed Nasim Manzur called for reducing the corporate tax rate from 27.5 per cent to 20 per cent, ensuring a stable tax regime for at least three years, and introducing digital and risk-based audit systems in tax administration. He also pointed to inefficiencies in airport cargo handling and said a large portion of healthcare costs in Bangladesh is still borne directly by citizens.
Maha Mirza called for increasing agricultural allocation from 5 per cent to 10 per cent, expanding access to modern machinery, strengthening rural procurement centres and improving cold storage facilities to reduce post-harvest losses.
