Bringing economy back on track top priority: Finance adviser

Dhaka: The top priority of Bangladesh’s interim government is to bring the economy back on track and restore the people’s trust in the banks, finance and planning adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has said. Former Bangladesh Bank governor Ahmed was entrusted with the charge of the finance and planning ministries by interim leader Muhammad Yunus, who announced the portfolios of his 16-member council of advisors on Friday. The interim government led by the 84-year-old Nobel laureate was formed after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government on August 5 following widespread protests against her government over a controversial quota system in jobs. Talking to reporters on Saturday for the first time after assuming office, Ahmed said the government’s priority is to restore the trust of common people in the banks while resuming the operations of the central bank. “Then we’ll work on bringing reforms,” state-run news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) quoted him as saying. “For various reasons, the country’s economy has slowed down. Our goal will be to revive the economy as quickly as possible. Once the economy comes to a standstill, it becomes quite difficult to restart it. We do not want it to come to a halt,” he said.

“There are various problems in the economy. There are issues with the banking sector, inflation, and many other complexities. We will need to work on all fronts,” the Dhaka Tribune newspaper quoted him as saying. Asserting that they have been given the responsibility during a “critical time” for the country, he said, “At this time, it’s not just about law and order or security measures; opening banks, keeping ports operational—everything needs to be given equal importance.” He added that it would not take much time to resume the basic operations of the banking sector.