World Bank fears extreme poverty rate in Bangladesh may increase in current fiscal year

POBNEWS24, Dhaka Apr 24, 2025 : The World Bank has commented that the extreme poverty rate in Bangladesh may increase in the current fiscal year 2024-25. The existing extreme poverty rate may increase from 7.7 percent to 9.3 percent. This may push another 3 million people into extreme poverty. This may increase not only the extreme poverty rate but also the national poverty rate. The national poverty rate was 20.5 percent last year. It may increase to 22.9 percent in 2025.
The World Bank report has made such a prediction. At the same time, Bangladesh will not be in a good position in macroeconomic indicators, the organization said in a press release on Thursday.
According to the 2022 census, the country’s population is about 170 million. Taking into account the World Bank’s calculations, the number of extremely poor people will be around 15.8 million by the end of 2025. On the other hand, the national poverty rate or the number of poor people will be about 39 million.
The World Bank report says that this situation may arise due to various reasons, including the high inflation prevailing in Bangladesh. During this time, people have lost their jobs, and their wages have also decreased. The weak labor market will continue this year. High inflation and reduced employment have had a major negative impact on the lives of low-income families. As a result, the real income of the common people, especially those at risk of falling below the poverty line, may decrease. In such a situation, three out of every five families may have to break their savings to survive in order to cope with the economic crisis. However, the World Bank believes that families receiving expatriate income will be better off.
The report says that the weak labor market and the slowdown in economic activity are having a greater impact on the poor at risk. In this situation, inequality in Bangladesh may increase further.
According to the World Bank, about 4 percent of workers have lost their jobs in the first six months of the current (2024-25) fiscal year. At the same time, wages for low-skilled workers have decreased by 2 percent and wages for high-skilled workers by 0.5 percent.
Regarding the macroeconomic situation, the World Bank’s forecast says that Bangladesh’s fiscal deficit may stand at 4.4 percent of GDP in the current fiscal year 2024-25. The government’s capital expenditure may decrease overall, although the World Bank believes that the benefits will not be as much. This situation will arise due to increased subsidies and interest expenses.
In addition, domestic political instability and uncertainty in global trade policy may affect investment, exports and overall economic activity.