Perspective Plan: Bangladesh to lag behind on many counts

Many targets of the Perspective Plan 2020-21 including achieving ten percent growth of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) are going to remain unattained. The GDP growth is projected 8.2 percent by the end of the next fiscal year, which will be fall short by 1.8 percent than the target. 

Apart from this, recent performance of the country's economy falls short in many areas including poverty alleviation, savings, investment, export and remittance.  

The interim report on the plan to be published Wednesday revealed this information. Dr Shamsul Alam, a member of the General Economic Division (GED) of the Planning Commission, will present the report at NEC Seminar room in Dhaka.   

According to the Planning Commission's data, although the total investment was planned to raise to 38 percent of the GDP by 2021, the achievement in this sector was 31.56 percent at the end of the last fiscal year.   

Private investment fluctuates between 21 to 23 percent, while investment in government sector doubled, reaching to 8 percent from 4 percent.  

The report also states that investment did not gain momentum as the saving rate failed to rise up to the expectation.    

Planning Commission sources said, the saving rate reached to 28.41 percent in last fiscal year while the target is to reach 39 percent by 2021.  

Poverty alleviation also stumbles as growths in investment and production failed to reach the target, says the report. Poverty rate was planned to reduce to 13.5 percent from 31.5 percent in 19 years.

Poverty rate was decreased to 21.8 percent in the last fiscal year, and General Economic Division believes that it will be reduced further to 17.83 percent by the end of the next fiscal year.

The gap between target and attainment will be as much as 4.33 percent.

Dr Shamsul Alam said, "Targets of the Perspective Plan were a little ambitious. However, the gradual growth rate will be steady even if targets of the plan remain unattained."  

He added, "The GDP growth rate was revised in the current seventh five-year plan after the 2014-15 fiscal year. Therefore, the target could be achieved." 

Dr Shamsul said achievements on several counts including controlling inflation, keeping budget deficit below 5 percent, ensuring uninterrupted power supply, achieving self-sufficiency in food, achieving higher literacy rate and gender equity have exceeded the targets. 

Although the export earning was planned to be raised from $16.2 billion in 2010 to $82 billion in 2021, but only $40.53 billion could be earned in this sector till the last fiscal year.

The GED formulated the Perspective Plan following the 'Vision 2021' in Awami League's election manifesto of 2008.

The plan is being implemented in two phases in the time period from 2010 to 2021.