GDP growth 5.43% in FY21

The country has registered 5.43 per cent GDP growth in Fiscal Year 2020-21 as per the new base year of 2015-16, according to the provisional data of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

The data also reflects 5.47 per cent GDP growth in the previous fiscal in accordance with the baseline of Fiscal Year 2005-06.

Planning Minister MA Mannan said this after the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) meeting at the NEC conference room in the capital on Tuesday.

“The rebasing of the GDP estimate by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) is a periodical exercise.

“The latest GDP base year has been updated to FY16 from FY06,” he said, adding that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has approved the new proposal of BBS to estimate the GDP growth.

However, the growth rate was 3.45 per cent in Fiscal Year 2019-20.

The per capita income was $ 2,554 in Fiscal Year 2020-21 as per the new baseline, according to the minister.

As per the BBS, the new average per-person income has been calculated taking the FY16 figure into account. The country’s per capita income was $ 2,227 based on FY06.

State Minister for Planning Prof Shamsul Alam said the government finalised FY 2015-16 as the new base year to calculate Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“From now on all national accounts will be calculated in accordance with the new base year. We will change the base year after every five years,” he added.

Rebasing the GDP is the process of replacing an old base year with a more recent base year to address the issues relating to prices.

According to the BBS, the current economy is estimated at Tk 34,840 billion in Fiscal Year 2020-21 as per the new base year of 2015-16 which was Tk 30,111 billion considering the previous base year.

The BBS also said the constant prices of GDP stood at Tk 27,939 billion in FY 20-21 as per the new base year from Tk 12,072 billion in the previous base year.