Yunus hopes teachers will return to classrooms ‘with renewed spirit’ as govt hikes housing allowance

The national economy has yet to regain the capacity to increase the MPO teachers’ housing allowance by 20 percent of the basic salary, chief advisor said

Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus says the interim government considers the demands of teachers and employees at MPO-listed private educational institutions to be justified.

However, he noted that despite recent improvements, Bangladesh’s economy, “crippled by 15 years of rampant corruption and plunder”, has yet to recover sufficiently to afford a 20 percent increase in housing allowance. As a result, the government had to take what he described as a “realistic” decision based on current economic conditions.

The interim government head hoped the protesting teachers would return to their classrooms "with renewed energy" and continue contributing to the development of the next generation, according to a statement from the Chief Advisor's Office issued on Tuesday.

The statement said the government decided to raise the housing allowance for the MPO-listed teachers and employees to 7.5 percent of basic salary from Nov 1, and by another 7.5 percent from Jul 1, 2026.

The chief advisor held a series of meetings with various advisors over the past few days regarding the demands of the MPO-listed teachers and employees of private educational institutions. They included Education Advisor CR Abrar, Finance Advisor Salehuddin Ahmed and Planning Advisor Wahiduddin Mahmud, according to the CAO.

Yunus extended special thanks to Abrar and other officials for their "tireless work" in this regard.