Majority of the state-owned organisations at present are profitable. Out of the 49 state-owned organisation, 35 are carrying out their all kinds of activities without any subsidy from the government, said officials. Finance ministry sources said among the state-owned organisations only 13 are facing losses, one is at break-even situation and all the rest are profitable.
According to finance ministry sources neat loss of the government organisations all together have been less as a number of government organisations including Telecommunication Regulatory Commission, Petrolium Corporation, Chattagram Port Authority, Rajuk, and Rural Electrification Board are profitable. The neat profit of the profitable stat-owned organisations, however, this year was less than the previous year.
About the state-owned organisations incurring losses, Finance Minister AHM Mostafa Kamal in his budget speech said, “The power sector is in loss because the government considering public interest has provided electricity to the public in a much subsidized price.” According to sources, in 2017-18 fiscal, BTRC bagged the highest neat profit among the state-owned organisations, bringing home Tk 2,548 crore.
BPC made a profit of Tk 1,944 crore in 2017-18 fiscal which the previous year was Tk 5,644 crore.
Petrobangla, or Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation, made a profit of Tk 889 crore in 2017-18 while Chattogram Port made Tk 591 crore in the same fiscal. In this regard, former deputy governorof the central bank Khandaker Ibrahim Khaled told the expertise in the management of the state-owned organisation has to be ensured. In many countries state-owned organisations are being administered profitably, benefitting the government and citizens both.
“If possible, the government should privatise the loss-incurring state-run organisations. On the other hand, good-governance must be ensured inside the management of the state-run bodies,” he added.
