The health sector received the biggest boost in the proposed national budget for the next fiscal year, with a sharp increase in allocation and a package of tax concessions aimed at lowering healthcare costs for ordinary people.

Leaders and activists of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s Dhaka North and South units brought out separate protest marches in the capital yesterday, denouncing the proposed FY2026–27 budget as “anti-people”.

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury yesterday proposed a range of transport benefits for senior citizens, including free travel on government-operated trains and discounted fares on metro rail services, as part of the national budget for FY2026-27.

Although the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27 offers some measures that are aligned with the government’s Smooth Transition Strategy (STS) for LDC graduation, it lacks a dedicated framework with preparations for this watershed moment, which is due in November, experts said.

The government has identified energy security as one of its top strategic priorities for fiscal 2026-27, even as it proposed a nearly 23 percent reduction in the power and energy sector’s allocation from this year’s original.

The proposed FY2026–27 budget presents a stark assessment of the financial sector’s long-running weaknesses but offers limited detail on how the BNP-led government plans to reform it.

LGRD minister calls the budget ‘creative’

Despite low GDP growth over the past three consecutive years, the government is targeting 6.5 percent growth for the next fiscal year in the proposed budget, based on the democratisation of the economy and encouraging private sector investment to boost growth, two economists said today

The government has proposed withdrawing source tax on the import of 60 essential commodities, aiming to improve the standard of living of every individual and family in the country

Keep the budget in line with ground realities.

Party says proposed budget places additional burden on ordinary citizens

The government has proposed the complete withdrawal of import duty on 51 new raw materials used in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to make medicines more affordable for consumers in the domestic marke

The Foreign Investors’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB), the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), and the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) have welcomed several measures in the proposed national budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year unveiled today.

Mahdi Amin says budget reflects BNP’s election manifesto and includes steps in 12 key sectors

While describing it as a largely realistic budget, he argued that the new government's ambitious targets have resulted in an expansionary fiscal plan whose implementation will be extremely difficult

REHAB is still reviewing the budget in detail, but its initial assessment suggests that it offers little meaningful support for the housing sector, he said

Finance minister says the measure reflects the govt’s commitment to senior citizens’ welfare

As part of efforts to maintain ecological balance, special initiatives have been undertaken to restore at least one river in each division by freeing it from encroachment

Once implemented, the international airports in Dhaka, Chattogram and Sylhet will gradually be upgraded into full-fledged logistics hubs, which will significantly expand the e-commerce sector

The Bangladesh government has proposed appropriate policy formulation in the electronics sector to transform the country into one of the leading global electronics manufacturing hubs within the next five years, as part of its fiscal year 2026-27 budget.