Al Amin :
The fresh restriction on people’s movement will be a major handicap for recovering the country’s economy, if the ongoing situation prolongs, economists opined.
The economic recovery will be slowed and it may take additional four to five months for resurgence of the economy, they said.
They think that the small businesses, including those run by women and young entrepreneurs, are being hit hardest by the economic fall-out of the pandemic.
Many owners of cottage, micro, small and medium sized enterprises (CMSMEs) are battling on multiple fronts in this time, including supply chain disruption, reduced local demand, workers who are sick or unable to go to the work places.
As part of the temporary solution, the ongoing lockdown measures may have enacted to contain Covid-19 infections but the measures will have to be relaxed within a short time to meet the economic demand, said Ahsan H Mansur, Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute (PRI).
“The government should allow the shops to keep open by maintaining health rules and by increasing working hours,” he added.
“It is more dangerous for our economy to hostage people in their houses in the name of lockdown. It is not good solution. Instead, the government should find ways how people can generate their incomes amid the pandemic situation,” Prof Abu Ahmed, told The New Nation.
He further said, “We have to learn how to live with the pandemic. In this case, health related services should have been increased but the government has failed to do it.”
“The enterprises of the CMSME will be the worst victims of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The government will have to take measures so that they can survive,” said Abul Kasem, Chairperson of the Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD).
He said, “The people are now in saving mode. They are hesitating to spend money. As a result, consumption rate has been declined sharply. We must come out from this situation,” he said. “The disbursement of the stimulus packages is not only the solution. The government should take steps so that the people become inspired to spend instead of saving money,” he added.
“The loans should be interest free and it should be distributed on the basis of segmentation so that the loan takers can use the money properly,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) will disburse Tk50 crore incentive loans with 4 per cent interest rate among the of the CMSMEs, who are affected by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
The Finance Ministry has given this money as a special grant under the financial incentive package.
The BSCIC directed it regional and district office to disburse incentive loans by June 30 this year.
From the incentive, an entrepreneur can take a loan of Tk 10 lakh without collateral and up to a maximum of Tk 20 lakh.
Md Mushtaq Hasan said that under the financial incentive package, we have received a special grant worth of Tk 50 crore out of Tk 100 crore allocated in favor of the BSCIC.
It is an obligation to disburse the loans by next June 30, he added.
The entrepreneurs will be able to repay the loan in a maximum of two years in 16 monthly equal installments with a grace period of six months, he said.
