Bangladesh eyes double-digit GDP growth in 5 years

Bangladeshi Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Sunday said the country's economy looked set to clock a double-digit growth in the next five years.

Kamal made the remark while speaking as the chief guest at a conference of Asian Development Bank (ADB) at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre here, reports Xinhua news agency.

After the completion of the mega Padma bridge, 25 metres in width and 10 km in length, which is being built over the Padma River, Bangladesh will see at least 1 per cent GDP growth, said the Minister.

Implementation of many more mega infrastructure projects will also help the country generate the rest of the expected growth, he added.

The Bangladeshi government in June unveiled a record 5.23 trillion taka ($62 billion) proposed national budget, targeting an economic growth of 8.2 per cent for the current 2019-20 fiscal year.

Bangladesh's economy grew 8.13 per cent this fiscal year, the highest in its history.

A new ADB report released on Wednesday said that buoyant exports, robust private consumption, higher remittances, accommodative monetary policy, ongoing reform to improve business climate and higher infrastructure spending have helped Bangladesh attain high growth.