Govt did not return empty-handed from IMF talks, FinMin tells parliament

Highlights

• Finance minister says Bangladesh voluntarily exited the previous IMF programme over unacceptable conditions
• New IMF programme to be negotiated based on Bangladesh's national priorities and public interest
• Govt seeks a fresh IMF loan package with a more realistic and implementation-focused reform agenda

Finance and Planning Minister Amir khosru Mahmud Chowdhury today (29 June) said the government did not return "empty-handed" from its engagement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), arguing that Bangladesh had voluntarily withdrawn from the previous programme after finding some of its conditions unacceptable.

Speaking during his winding-up speech on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27 in parliament, the minister said, "We ourselves withdrew from that programme as some of the conditions set under the previous government's arrangement were not acceptable to us after considering the interests of the country and its people." 

The finance minister added that the government would continue discussions with the IMF and seek a new programme that aligns with Bangladesh's national priorities and public interest.

The remarks come just over a month after the government announced its decision to opt out of the IMF loan programme signed under the previous Awami League administration and seek a fresh financing package on revised terms. 

Following a virtual meeting between Finance Minister Amir Khosru and IMF Deputy Managing Director Nigel Clarke on 21 May, both sides agreed to begin work on a new programme centred on a realistic, implementation-focused reform agenda.

The government has argued that while it remains committed to macroeconomic stability and structural reforms, some of the conditions attached to the existing programme no longer reflect Bangladesh's current economic realities and are difficult to implement.