London, 15 May 2017:  Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq yesterday said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina never makes any law which goes against the interest of the expatriate Bangladeshis. “That’s why there is nothing in the Citizenship Act to hamper the interest of the expatriates,” he said at a view-exchange meeting organized by Bangladesh High Commission in London on the proposed Citizenship Act, 2015.

Breaking all the previous records, Bangladesh’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth has reached 7.24 percent this fiscal year according to the provisional estimate of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). Due to the robust growth in the industrial sector the GDP rose. The GDP growth was 7.11 percent in the last fiscal year (FY16). As per the BBS provisional estimation, the per capita income also rose to US$1,602 in the outgoing fiscal year which was US$ 1,465 in the previous financial year.

The National Economic Council (NEC) yesterday approved a Tk 1,53,331 crore Annual Development Program (ADP) for fiscal year 2017-18 (FY18), giving top priority to transport sector infrastructures, energy, education and health. The approval came at the NEC meeting held at its Conference Room in Sher-e-Banglanagar with NEC Chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. Of the Tk 1, 53,331 crore original ADP, Tk 96,331 crore will come from the national exchequer while the remaining Taka 57,000 crore will come as project assistance.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit Saudi Arabia on May 20-22 to attend the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh. Saudi King and Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saudhas sent a message to the Prime Minister inviting her to join the summit to be hosted by his country.

The 16th session of the 10th parliament begins on May 30, as the national budget for the 2017-2018 fiscal year will be placed the following day. Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith will place the budget on June 1. President Abdul Hamid yesterday convened the parliament session.

Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith will attend the annual general meeting of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group. The Minister will be attending the three-day Board of Governors meeting, to be held at Jeddah in the Saudi Arabia on May 16-18.

As part of the Prime Minister’s special initiative for bringing all homeless people under housing facilities, the government has so far rehabilitated 1,43,692 homeless families under the Ashrayan project across the country. Project Director of Ashrayan-2 Project informed this yesterday. He said the government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina would rehabilitate all the homeless families and make them income generating forces.

Bangladesh and Malaysia will hold the first foreign secretary-level talks, widely known as foreign-officeconsultation (FOC) in Dhaka today. Matters including sending more workers from Bangladesh to Malaysia, legalizing irregular Bangladeshi workers, increasing Malaysian investment in Bangladesh and bilateral trade, and making Bangladesh a dialogue partner of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, among others, are likely to be discussed in the talks. Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque and his counterpart Malaysian Foreign Ministry Secretary General Ramlan Ibrahim will lead respective sides in the talks.

The government will take necessary measures to free four rivers – the Buriganga, the Dhaleshwari, the Karnaphuli and the Boral from encroachment and pollution. The decision was taken at a meeting at the shipping ministry yesterday to curb river pollution and increase navigability. Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan presided over the meeting.

The Supreme Court yesterday stayed till May 18 a High Court (HC) order that declared the mobile courts conducted by executive magistrates illegal and contradictory to the Constitution. Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division Justice Hasan Foyez Siddique passed the order in response to a petition filed by deputy attorney general Motahar Hossain Saju seeking a stay on the HC order in the morning.

The Election Commission will finalize its roadmap on May 23 to hold the 11th parliamentary election, said Secretary of Election Commission Secretariat Mohammad Abdullah. The secretary said the roadmap will be published in book form once it is finalized at the commission meeting on May 23.

In order to expedite the remediation process of garment factories, a new Remediation Coordination Cell (RCC) was launched in Bangladesh. With the support of International Labour Organisation, the RCC has been established through the collaboration of the Government of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA).

The government has set up a committee to check draft laws for proper language, accuracy and consistency with existing laws. The eight-member panel tasked with making recommendation on drafts before they are presented to the Cabinet was formed by an order of the Cabinet Division on Thursday.