Prime Minister  Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday announced five more stimulus packages worth about Taka 3,200 crore to help low-income people hit hard by the ongoing restrictions imposed to check further transmission of the Coronavirus. PM's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim informed BSS of the matter. Under the new incentives, Taka 450 crore has been allocated for day-laborers (14,37,389), transport workers (2,35,033), small traders (50,445) and shipping workers (1,603) who will receive Taka 2500 each in cash. Taka 150 crore has been allocated for special open market sale (OMS) centers to be set up at 813 places across the country from July 25 to August 7 for 14 days to help the low-income people in urban areas (with 20,000 metric tons rice and 14,000 metric tons flour). Besides, Taka 100 crore is allocated for special assistance in favor of the Deputy Commissioners for providing food assistance in response to the request of the public on telephone number 333. Taka 1,500 crore is allocated for Palli Sanchay Bank, Karmasangsthan Bank and PKSF for financing job creation activities in rural areas with  the additional allocation of Taka 3,200 crore for the purpose of providing loan assistance (at 4% interest). In addition, Taka 1,000 crore has been allocated for providing Working Capital Loan Assistance at 4 percent interest through the banking system for the purpose of paying the salaries, allowances of the employees of the hotels, motels and theme parks in the tourism sector. Earlier in the last year, the Prime Minister announced a total of 23 stimulus packages of Taka 124,053 crore to keep rolling the wheels of country’s economy against the back drop of Covid-19 outbreak. When the first wave of Covid-19 hit the country, the Prime Minister provided cash support of Taka 2,500 each to 36.50 lakh poor families and vulnerable groups across the country. This year, the premier in the second phase of financial assistance also distributed Taka 2,500 to some 36.50 lakh families hit hard by the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. In the first wave of Covid-19, a total of nearly 2.5 crore people including day-labourers, transport workers, hawkers, rickshaw pullers, school and madrasa teachers, students, Imams and Muazzins along with people of other religious organizations, journalists and other low-income people were brought under the government’s assistance due to prime minister’s humanitarian assistance initiative. Source: BSS AH

Unprecedented stimulus spending is helping Indian companies to financially recover after disastrous Covid-19 second wave. The indicators of the financial graph are going upwards.  The ratio of upgrades to downgrades in ratings and credit outlooks by the local units of S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Group has improved to 1.2 this quarter, set for the highest level in nearly three years, data compiled by Bloomberg show. K Ravichandran, a deputy chief rating officer at ICRA Ltd, a local unit of Moody’s, said, “Local companies are facing fewer downgrades during the second wave of the pandemic than during the first wave as most of them have bolstered their liquidity in the past couple of quarters, thanks to all the pandemic support announced by policymakers”. The nascent recovery in Indian firms’ credit quality adds to signs that the pandemic-hit economy may be turning a corner. Still, many investors remain cautious and are piling into bonds that compensate them with higher coupons each time the indicators in the graph go down. Source: The Times of India B.M./ Rtv

The government approved two more stimulus packages worth Taka 2,700 crore to infuse dynamism into cottage, micro and medium industry to offset COVID-19 shock, improve rural marginal people’s livelihood and expand social safety nets for extreme poor aged-people and widows. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has approved these two stimulus packages while implementation of the packages will start shortly, said a Finance Ministry press release today (Sunday). The release said with the addition of two latest packages, the total number of stimulus packages now stood at 23 with an overall outlay of Taka 1,24,053 crore which is also 4.44 percent of GDP. The size of the freshly approved first stimulus package is Taka 1,500 crore and out of this amount, Taka 300 crore will be given to the SME Foundation for expanding its operations meant for the cottage and SMEs alongside facilitating the female entrepreneurs. Besides, Taka 100 crore will be provided to BSCIC, Taka 50 crore to Joyeeta Foundation, Taka 50 crore to the NGO Foundation to undertake various programmes to improve the livelihood of marginal people, Taka 300 crore to Social Development Foundation, Taka 300 crore to Palli Daridro Bimochon Foundation, Taka 100 crore to Small Farmer Development Foundation, and Taka 300 crore to Bangladesh Rural Development Board. The size of the fresh 2nd stimulus package is Taka 1,200 crore and it will be spent for bringing the poor people, widows and husband abandoned women of some 150 upazilas under the government allowances in the next fiscal year (FY22). The Finance Division has recently organized three view-exchange meetings on the overall aspects of stimulus packages and economic recovery in the wake of COVID-19. These meetings suggested for expanding the coverage of credit through the various government and semi government agencies related to cottage, SMEs, alongside the banking system to infuse more dynamism in the rural economy to deal with the COVID-19 situation. Besides, the participants in the meeting also advocated for taking more steps for developing women entrepreneurship, improving the livelihood of the marginal people in the rural areas to further alleviate poverty and thus expanding the social safety nets for the extreme poor families. High government officials, business leaders, representatives from the banks, financial institutions, development partners and agencies, research organizations, stakeholders of various sectors and media personnel attended those meetings. Source: BSS AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (Wednesday) asked the authorities concerned particularly the finance ministry to prepare another plan of a stimulus package to effectively fight the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The premier gave the directive from a meeting to finalise the eighth Five-Year plan (2021-2025) at her official Ganabhaban residence in the capital. PM’s Deputy Press Secretary Hasan Jahid Tusher briefed the media after the meeting. Member (Senior Secretary) of the Planning Commission (General Economics Division) Dr Shamaul Alam made the presentation of the final draft of the eighth five-year plan with a slogan ” Towards the prosperity with all” in the meeting. The eighth five-year plan is scheduled to get its final approval in the next ECNEC meeting. The Prime Minister has given necessary directions after witnessing the presentation on the plan. Sheikh Hasina informed the meeting of a roadmap prepared by herself regarding the country’s development while she was in jail during the 1/11 caretaker government. The premier asked all concerned to create a strong internal market alongside expanding the regional and international markets for the local products. Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam, PM’s Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus, Governor of Bangladesh Bank Fazle Kabir, Senior Secretary of Planning Commission Md Asadul Islam and Senior Secretary of Finance Ministry Abdur Rouf Talukder, among others, were present. Source: BSS AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday asked the private banks to supplement the government’s credit programme for the small traders under its stimulus packages announced to offset the Covid-19 fallout alongside serving the distressed humanity. “The state-owned banks have been extending support to the credit programme (for the small traders). In this case, if the private banks come forward, there is no doubt that they will be ultimately benefited once the trade and commerce starts in full swing after the present COVID-19 situation,” she said. The Prime Minister said this while receiving donations virtually through a videoconference from her official residence Ganabhaban. Some 35 commercial banks under Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB) provided a total of 25,95,000 pieces of blankets to the Prime Minister’s Relief and Welfare Fund to help the poor during the upcoming winter season. On behalf of the premier, her Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus received the donations. Sheikh Hasina said there is a programme of economic support for the small traders at low interest rate under the facilities the government is providing under its incentive packages. “However, I think that the private banks need to be more sincere to this end … as you always stand beside the people and in this case you’ll also have to stand beside them,” she said. Extending thanks to the BAB for its generosity of providing this donation, the premier said the association leaders stand beside the people when any disaster takes place in the country. “We could provide more assistance to the people for their generosity,” she said. Sheikh Hasina said the menace of natural disasters could be more in the country during the winter in the way it (country) experienced flood and other natural calamities. Expressing happiness over providing winter clothes meaning blankets before the arrival of winter, the Prime Minister said the people will be immensely benefitted for it. “I extend my sincere thanks to the BAB for this,” she said. Mentioning that the entire world, including Bangladesh, is witnessing stalemate in everything due to the coronavirus, Sheikh Hasina praised the people of Bangladesh for their courage and mental strength in facing the situation. In this connection, she mentioned her government’s timely and proper steps to combat the COVID-19. Expressing apprehension over the second wave of Covid-19, the PM said the Covid-19 situation has largely been brought under control in Bangladesh, but the resurge in Covid infection is seen in many countries, including the European ones. In this context, she stressed the need for taking cautionary measures in Bangladesh. “We need to be aware from now on. We are already taking appropriate measures in this regard and urging everyone to be further aware of this…protect yourself and protect others.” She said all should be conscious so that the second wave of Covid cannot leave adverse impact on the country’s economy and not hamper the livelihood of the people as well as the wheels of economy remain moving. Sheikh Hasina said the government is setting up 100 economic zones across the country and there is the scope to make massive investment there. Noting that the country’s foreign currency reserve is over US$40 billion, she said the government has a target to increase the reserve to $50 billion during the golden jubilee of the country’s independence. The Prime Minister said she always wants Bangladesh to stand on its own feet, to be self-reliant without owing to anyone and move in the world arena with dignity. She said the government has taken a plan to carry out some development works with own finance not borrowing from the external sources rather from the local banks. “We can do many development works ourselves without borrowing from others. Or we can do the works with a loan from our banks…. We’ve also taken measures to do at least some works with our own finance. You will know the details very soon,” she said. Noting that the government’s goal is that no people will remain homeless and landless in the country in the Mujib Borsho, the Prime Minister asked the BAB representatives to help the homeless and landless people in their respective areas by providing them with houses. “If there are any homeless or landless people in your areas, you can give them some houses,” she said, adding the government has been providing houses to the homeless and landless families. “There will be no more poverty in our country, if we all work together and work in our own areas,” she continued. Sheikh Hasina said the government has brought down the poverty rate to 20 percent in the country, but the economic slowdown caused by Covid-19 hampered the pace of the poverty alleviation. She, however, hope that the government will be able to make a poverty-hunger-free Bangladesh and give the people a beautiful life, returning to the previous pace of poverty alleviation. Alongside ensuring food security, the government’s goal is to remove malnutrition, increase employment and revive the rural economy, added the premier. “We have to increase the purchasing power and financial capacity of the people of the country, then the market for our products will be in our country,” she said. Source: BSS AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday announced a new stimulus package of Tk 5,000 crore to provide financial assistance to small and medium farmers in rural areas for boosting agricultural production facing the fallout of Covid-19. “Bangladesh Bank will formulate a new refinancing scheme of Tk 5,000 crore to pump running capital into the agricultural sector. We’ll create this Tk 5,000 crore stimulus package only for the agricultural sector. We’ll disburse money from this fund to farmers at only 5 percent interest,” she said. The Prime Minister said this while delivering her introductory speech in a videoconference from her official residence Ganobhaban with government officials from 16 districts under Khulna and Barishal divisions. The money from this fund will be disbursed among small and medium farmers, including that of poultry and dairy sector, in rural areas, she said. On April 7 last, the Prime Minister held a videoconference with government officials from 15 districts under Chattogram and Sylhet divisions to discuss the present COVID-19 there. Source: UNB AH