Home ›› 01 Jan 2022 ›› Front
Bangladesh spends only 22 paisa for collecting every Tk 100 in revenue, which is the lowest among any other country across the globe, says a recent study by the National Board of Revenue.
The study added that India’s expenditure for revenue collection is much higher than Bangladesh as the neighbouring country spends Tk 0.60 for collecting every Tk 100 – adjusted for currency. Thailand spends Tk 0.71 for the same purpose.
The cost is even higher in developed countries, says the study, showing that Japan spends Tk 1.70 for collecting Tk 100 in revenue – which is almost eight times higher than Bangladesh. Malaysia and Singapore’s expenditure on revenue collection is Tk 1 and Tk .79 respectively.
The NBR had presented this report at an event held to mark the National VAT Day and VAT Week-2021 on December 10, organised in the capital’s Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh.
Addressing that occasion, NBR Member (VAT Policy) Masud Sadiq said, “Bangladesh has an ample potential for revenue generation. If the government invests more in this sector, more revenue will come.”
Several experts said the low expenditure is disrupting revenue collection by lowering motivation, and this phenomenon also indicates that the NBR’s investments in ICT and infrastructure development, and allocation in training is low. Speaking to The Business Post on Tuesday, former member of the NBR Md Alamgir Hossain said, “The authorities are behaving conservatively regarding expenditure.
“When training increases, when there is motivation and skilled manpower, and when the officials get adequate logistics facilities, Bangladesh will have a good revenue collection and this sector will grow further.”
Alamgir continued, “There has been no development in the officials’ skills. NBR employees need a professional training academy, and foreign and domestic instructors for skill development. The NBR is not achieving expected performance due to a lack of investment in those sectors.”
According to the NBR annual report for Fiscal Year 2019-20, Bangladesh spent Tk .31 for collecting Tk 100 in revenue, which was Tk .61 in FY2018-19 and Tk .80 in FY 2016-17.
Although the cost in revenue collection is low, Bangladesh’s collection in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the lowest in the world. At current market prices, the size of Bangladesh’s GDP is currently above $400 billion.
Of this figure, the revenue income is only Tk 2.62 lakh crore.
