Loans proposed for livestock business at a mere 5% interest rate

Finance Minister AMA Muhith presented his Tk 2.95 trillion national budget in Parliament on Thursday.

He proposed to allocate Tk 409.75 billion for the agriculture and rural development Sector.

“Bangladesh Bank will soon start a credit programme for development of livestock under which loan will be provided at 5 percent interest rate for purchasing and raising livestock," said Muhith.

“In order to achieve self-sufficiency in this sector, an initiative will be taken to implement a 3-year integrated programme,” he said.

“The kind of development witnessed in fisheries is not taking place in livestock sector. Although good progress has been made in the field of poultry, progress in livestock is lacklustre.”

The minister said no effective initiative had taken place to develop the livestock sector and its ‘food supply system was quite weak’.

He proposed that the government should take up projects on a pilot basis for this sector’s development considering the nutritional demand of the people.

Initiatives proposed for the sector also included production of vaccines for animals and birds, provision of medical treatment, species development through artificial insemination and provision of training for farmers.

The finance minister in his speech also announced that the overall agricultural research initiatives will continue.

Taxes on poultry, dairy and hatchery

Muhith proposed to reduce tax rate to three percent on income from poultry, poultry feed, dairy, shrimp, fish hatchery, mulberry, horticulture, pisciculture and apiculture.

Three percent tax rate has been proposed on the first Tk 1 million income, 10 percent on the next Tk 2 million and 15 percent on the balance.