Staff Correspondent
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus today said the government will form a ‘National Consensus Building Commission’ soon with the chiefs of six reform commissions.
“The interim government has formed six reform commissions in the first phase and I hope they will submit their final reports soon. We are moving towards establishing a ‘National Consensus Building Commission’ with the chairmen of these six commissions,” he said while addressing the nation marking the Victory Day.
Prof Yunus said the task of the new commission will be to identify all the issues on which consensus can be established by exchanging views with all stakeholders, including political parties, and to provide recommendations for implementation of these issues.
“Since establishing a national consensus is a very important responsibility of the interim government, I (chief adviser) will serve as the chairman of this commission. Professor Ali Riaz will serve as the vice-chairman of this commission,” he said.
Mentioning that the commission can co-opt new members if it deems necessary, the chief adviser hoped that the National Consensus Building Commission will be able to start working in next month after receiving the final reports of these first six commissions.
The first task of this new commission, he said, will be to quickly create consensus on all the issues that are necessary for holding elections and to finalise the advice on when elections can be held after holding discussion with all concerned.
Prof Yunus said apart from organising elections and reforms, the people have entrusted the interim government with many responsibilities including recovering the economy and improving living standards of the people.
“We got a devastated economy from the fascist government. Our foreign exchange reserves hit rock bottom,” he said.
After assuming office by the interim government, the export earnings in November 2024 were US$ 4.12 billion, which is 15.63 percent more than the previous month.
Overall, exports reached US$ 16.11 billion during the July-November period of 2024, he said.
The export earnings in the same period last year were US$ 14.34 billion, he said, adding that the growth in export earnings in this quarter as compared to the same period last year was 12.34 percent.
“Foreign exchange reserves have reached US$ 19 billion. Through all these, our economy has started to turn around. The situation is improving,” said the chief adviser.
Terming the garment workers as one of the driving forces of the Bangladesh economy, he said the interim government decided to increase their annual wages by 9 percent after holding talks with the labor unions and the owners, considering the issue of inflation.
The government is working sincerely to control inflation, he said, adding, “There is no hesitation to admitting that we have not yet achieved the desired success in this regard.”
However, he expressed his belief that inflation will come down soon.
Noting that in the last few months, the prices of some products have increased in the market, he said the government is trying to reduce the prices of goods by increasing supply, reducing duty on imports, reducing the influence of middlemen and through market supervision.
Extortion in the transport sector has not been completely stopped yet, he said, adding, “If it is possible, we hope that the prices of goods will come down further. We sympathise with your suffering. However, we know that the government’s job is not just to express sympathy. We are making every effort to reduce your suffering.”
The chief adviser sought everyone’s cooperation to keep commodity prices affordable in the upcoming holy month of Ramadan.
“We have already talked to the traders. They have promised us that there will be no shortage of supply of goods in the market,” he said.
If anyone tries to create an artificial crisis for the sake of excessive profit, the government will take strict action against him or her, he said.
“We are working to launch an alternative agricultural market to stop the influence of the market syndicate,” he said.
