The Prime Minister’s Economic Affairs advisor Mashiur Rahman on Monday underscored the need for surveying the country's informal sector which could help to boost economic development by raising gross domestic product (GDP) and gross national income (GNI).
He made the statement while addressing as the chief guest at a discussion organised by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) on the occasion of National Statistics Day 2023 held at BBS auditorium in the capital.
He said, “Informal sector of the country needs to be surveyed for increasing GDP and GNI which will help the economic development. The government should appoint statisticians in the different ministries to survey the informal sector for getting accurate and efficient statistics.”
However, he said the BBS should increase the manpower to conduct surveys in time.
“Statistics is a technical subject. It is not possible to produce and deliver quality information without skilled manpower,” he said, adding, “Qualified manpower should be recruited in BBS.”
Speaking as a special guest, state minister for planning Prof ShamsulAlam said “At present the most important issue is fuel. Information is more important than fuel. He said that statistics or information is one of the tools of development.
“Statistics are gaining importance. Information is essential for socio-economic development and planning of the country. Accurate, timely and quality data in every sector is very important to implement other plans announced by the present government including building Smart Bangladesh,” he also said.
He also said BBS should take immediate action in the preparation and supply of statistics and publish all data in time.
“Bangladesh gets an IMF loan due to the success of this integrated management of data. The economy of the country is developing as our GDP and per capita income increase,” he also said.
Bangladesh will become a high-income country by 2041 despite the downturns caused by the coronavirus pandemic, he said, adding that the government has taken all kinds of plans to achieve the purpose.
The post-Covid economic recovery has brought new challenges in the country, but Bangladesh gets success, he added.
