Dhaka: State Minister for Planning Md. Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki today asserted that the government's primary objective is to construct an investment-driven and productive economy that can generate large-scale employment through structural reforms, improved project implementation, and enhanced public investment efficiency. 'Our commitment is to build an investment-driven and productive economy that will create employment. This vision is being reflected in the budget and various policy measures,' he stated at a seminar organized by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the seminar, titled 'Labour Market Tightness and Aggregate Shocks: Evidence from Bangladesh's Largest Online Job Portal,' was presided over by Dr. A. K. Enamul Haque, Director General of BIDS. The keynote presentation was delivered by Professor Dr. Atonu Rabbani, Research Director of the General Economics Division (GED) at BIDS. Saki emphasized that the government is aligning all development programs with its election manifesto and a forthcoming five-year development and reform strategy, expected to be unveiled before August 17.
The state minister revealed that a review of the Annual Development Programme (ADP) is underway to ensure alignment with the manifesto and upcoming strategy paper. Highlighting past inefficiencies, he noted that many projects were previously approved without proper coordination, leading to significant resource wastage. 'We are moving away from a piecemeal project approach towards a programme-based approach so that related projects are implemented together,' he remarked.
Addressing structural inefficiencies and corruption, Saki mentioned the formation of a committee to prepare a unified rate schedule for development projects. An artificial intelligence-based software system is also being developed to automatically verify project costs, ensuring transparency in public spending. Additionally, the government is integrating digital initiatives to create an interoperable national data system, modernizing the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) by enhancing its technological capacity.
Saki stressed the importance of data integrity and transparency, stating, 'The policy of this government is not to create an artificial reality. We want to know where we actually stand.' He outlined new growth engines in sectors such as information and communication technology (ICT), electronics, light engineering, agro-processing, and semiconductors, while emphasizing the need to resolve energy constraints through domestic gas exploration and renewable energy expansion.
The state minister also highlighted plans to restore confidence in the financial sector, improve monetary and fiscal policy coordination, and simplify business procedures through time-bound approval systems and integrated single-window services. Investment in education, healthcare, and housing remains a priority, alongside the expansion of universal social protection programs to minimize exclusion.
Saki acknowledged implementation as the government's biggest challenge and announced the likely introduction of digital dashboards to monitor development project progress in real time. He called for greater cooperation from researchers and expressed hope that BIDS would play a stronger role in supporting evidence-based policymaking and national development through expanded research activities.