Fiscal Measures for Tackling the Economic Fallout in Bangladesh: An Assessment of Stimulus Measures during the COVID-19 Pandemic Era

Abstract

The steady average GDP growth of Bangladesh, exceeding 7% for consecutive four years, has been affected significantly during the nightmare of the COVID-19 Pandemic era, a once-in-a-century-crisis. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic has not only caused the loss of people’s life but also been largely disruptive in terms of economic activities. The government has taken several fiscal measures including rolling out several stimulus packages, changes in monetary and macro-prudential changes, direct tax policy changes through national budgets to mitigate the adverse effects induced by the enduring pandemic crisis, thereby providing a protective shield against this challenging period. In view of the scale of disruption caused by the pandemic, an attempt is made to analyze the fiscal measures, including the direct tax policy changes, introduced through the consecutive two annual budgets of 2020 and 2021.