Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury has said that the government wants to bring people who remain outside the mainstream economy into formal economic participation, describing it as a fundamental right of every citizen.
He stressed that democracy should not exist only in politics, but also in the economy, adding that the government is placing importance on the 'democratization of the economy.'
The Finance Minister was addressing the ‘Stepping Forward’ the inauguration of RAISE-2 project held at the PKSF auditorium in the capital.
He said that there must be specific standards in every development project and the government will not implement any project that fails to meet those criteria.
Amir Khasru praised PKSF for its work and noted that the government is considering what additional support may be needed to further expand the organization's activities.
He highly appreciated the organisation’s role in grassroots development, employment generation and poverty alleviation.
He said the government has introduced strict benchmarks for approving projects in order to ensure transparency, accountability and effective utilisation of public money.
''We are now evaluating projects based on return on investment, employment generation and environmental considerations. If a project does not meet these standards, we will not undertake it.'
He said taxpayers’ money must be used carefully and people should know the rationale, expected outcomes and public benefits behind every project.
