Prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday told the parliament that the Bangladesh government had started a process to collect an additional $1 billion in budgetary support to tackle a future emergency situation, including the economic crisis that emerged due to the Russia-Ukraine war.
The prime minister revealed it in a tabled written answer while responding to a question from ruling party lawmaker Md Mozaffar Hossain from Jamalpur-5 constituency during her question-answer session.
This budget support will be spent on the stimulus package for industries, factories, trading organisations, small and medium entrepreneurs, as well as the social safety net, she said.
Besides, a process is on to collect US$ 500 million as budgetary support to tackle the economic crisis due to the Covid pandemic under the programme, she added.
The prime minister said that her government was carrying out their relentless efforts to implement the Sustainable Development Goals as declared by the United Nations with various plans for well-planned socio-economic development and employment opportunities for the people.
Replying to a question from Md Shahiduzzaman Sarker of Naogaon-2 constituency, Sheikh Hasina said that so far 35,52,340 homeless people had been rehabilitated across the country.
She said that all the landless and homeless families in the country would be rehabilitated gradually through the construction of houses.
She added that home construction activities for the homeless would be continued across the country.
She continued, ‘Landless-homeless-rootless people are being rehabilitated, even procuring land where proper khash land is not found.’
The prime minister said that her government was committed to the word ‘no place to stay’ forever.
She said that Bangladesh was being enriched as a whole by transforming the settled families and their future generations into human resources.
In response to another question from AKM Rahmatullah of the ruling party from Dhaka-11 constituency, she said that the production of food grains in the country in 2009 was 3.38 crore metric tonnes.
At present, she said, production has increased to 4.53 crore metric tonnes.
Currently, Bangladesh ranks third in the world in rice and vegetable production, while 7th in mango and potato production, 4th in tea production, and first among 11 hilsa producing countries, she added.
In response to another question from Mamtaz Begum of the ruling party's Manikganj-2 constituency, she stated that the country's railway network currently serves 43 districts.
If the ongoing railway projects are implemented, 19 more districts will come under the railway network, she added.
She went on saying that the remaining four districts will also come under the railway network after the completion of the 30-year master plan.
