Finance Minister AMA Muhith yesterday said a Tk 340,000 crore budget for the 2016-17 fiscal year is going to be prepared, fixing the GDP growth target at 7.2 per cent. “It may be an ambitious one. But it is necessary at this moment,” he said yesterday while addressing a pre-budget discussion with members of civil society think tank at NEC conference room at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital. Muhith also announced to undertake a separate capital programme for the mega projects to expedite the implementation work of the projects. The finance minister also hinted an increase in public investment for higher growth in the next fiscal. However, he expressed dissatisfaction over the implementation of annual development programme in this fiscal. “According ADP implementation report of seven months of the current fiscal, the achievement is lowest within the last few years,” he said.
The government achieved only 28 per cent of ADP implementation target during the last seven months, he added. Muhith said there will be emphasis on the transport sector in the next budget. He further said that a foreign assistance dependent development budget will be prepared.
“Of course we will prefer concessional loan for development budget,” he noted. Noted Economist Prof Wahid Uddin Mahmud suggested to keep government share in mega projects along with foreign fund. “The government should prepare big budget in this fiscal as Bangladesh is the sole country among the least development countries in the world that  added. Prof. Wahid Uddin also suggested to reduce price of oil to gain success in the global trade. “If the oil price will decline, its impact fall in the GDP growth immensely,” he added. He said the price of the oil in the global market is experiencing decline trend even maximum products also are same.
Prof. Wahid Uddin also said the forex reserve is in increasing in Bangladesh but the exchange rate of dollar is remaining unchanged which does not provide benefit.  He also suggested to increase tax net to increase public investment to encourage private investment. Among others Dr. Sazzad Zahir, Executive Director, Economic Research Group (ERG), general secretary Dr. Jamaluddin Ahmed, director general of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) Dr. KAS Murshid,  research fellow of BIDS, Dr Nazneen Ahmed addressed the programme.