Over $16 billion stolen from Bangladesh every year for the past 15 Years: New report reveals

A new report from a committee that reviewed Bangladesh‍‍`s economy has revealed a shocking figure: over $16 billion has been illegally sent out of the country every year for the past 15 years under the rule of the Awami League. 

This amount is roughly equal to 200,000 crore Taka at the current exchange rate.

On Sunday, December 1, the White Paper Preparation Committee handed over its findings to Chief Advisor Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus. 

The committee, which is headed by well-known economist Dr. Debpriya Bhattacharya, Senior Fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), presented the report at the Chief Advisor’s office.

Titled "State of the Economy of Bangladesh," the report covers many important issues such as GDP growth, inflation, foreign trade, the banking sector, energy shortages, government debt, the accuracy of official statistics, trade, government spending, mega projects, the business environment, poverty, education, healthcare, gender equality, and climate change. 

The committee also looked at major projects like the Padma Bridge, rail links, the Rooppur nuclear power plant, the Matarbari power plant, and the Karnaphuli Tunnel.

The Chief Advisor commented, as reported by Samakal, that the report is a "historic document" and said, "What has happened in the financial sector is deeply troubling. These problems have been right in front of us, but no one has spoken about them."

Dr. Bhattacharya also mentioned that the full report would soon be available online. A press conference will be held the following day to explain the findings in detail. 

During the report handover, he stressed that there needs to be a coordinated approach to economic reforms across the country.

The committee used scientific methods, government records, and global reports to highlight the scale of money laundering. 

Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) had earlier stated on November 2 that between $12 and $15 billion had been transferred out of the country every year for the past 15 years. 

A U.S.-based group, Global Financial Integrity, also reported that from 2009 to 2018, an average of $8.27 billion was sent out of Bangladesh each year, disguised as trade transactions.

The committee, which was formed on August 28, had three months to prepare the report.

The full committee includes: Dr. Zahid Hossain, former lead economist of the World Bank’s Dhaka office; Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Senior Fellow at CPD; Selim Raihan, Executive Director of SANEM; Professor A.K. Enamul Haque from East West University’s Department of Economics; Ferdous Ara Begum, CEO of Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD); Imran Matin, Executive Director of BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD); Kazi Iqbal, Senior Research Fellow at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies; Professor M. Tamim from BUET; Professor Mohammad Abu Yusuf from Dhaka University’s Development Studies Department; Professor Shormind Nilormi from Jahangirnagar University’s Economics Department; and Tasnim Arifa Siddiquee, Chair of the Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit (RMMRU).