Interim govt not to proceed with 5-yr plan: Wahiduddin

The interim government today took a key decision not to move forward with the current 8th Five-year Plan (8FYP).

“We’re suspending the five-year plan temporarily. We’re not thinking about it right now”.

Advisor of the interim government on the Ministries of Planning and Education Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud said this while briefing reporters at NEC conference room after the ECNEC meeting today.

The first ECNEC meeting of the interim government was held at Chief Adviser’s Office in Tejgaon with Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus in the chair.

Wahiduddin Mahmud said for the new thinking of the country’s economy, as well as exploring the sources of finance, the government has recently formed a taskforce to get the new direction of the economy.

The taskforce will submit report within three months, he added.

Dr Wahiduddin, however, said that the government would not wait for taskforce report.

“We won’t need to wait for that, we’re preparing some new projects for quick execution,” he said.

In this connection, the Planning Adviser mentioned that over the years, the country has witnessed construction of so many infrastructural projects.

“But, in terms of Human Resources, especially education and training, we’re lagging far behind. So, we’ve to do something in this regard very quickly,” he said.

When asked about suspension of the 8th Five-year Plan, Dr Wahiduddin said, “In reality, there are no similarities of this Plan with the national budget framed by the Ministry of Finance.”

“It’s not a matter of suspension of the Plan afresh, as it’s already remained suspended,” he said.

About the future of the 9th Five-year Plan, he said that obviously the next political government would frame their plan as per their choices probably to turn Bangladesh as a higher middle incoming or developed country…we won’t take any major political decision in this regard, he added.

Five-year Plan is a document which incorporates directives and philosophy of political government, which we should not…”

The 8th Five-year Plan (8FYP) (July 2020-June 2025) was approved by the National Economic Council (NEC) headed by the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on December 29, 2020.

The plan succeeded the Seventh Five Year Plan (7FYP) and is serving as the first document to implement the ‘Perspective Plan of Bangladesh 2021-2041’.

The 8FYP is a vast policy and strategic document encompassing a wide array of issues ranging from assessment of progress made in the 7FYP to macroeconomic framework and sector specific strategies to achieve quantitative and qualitative targets. (BSS)