Finance and Planning Minister M Saifur Rahman yesterday asked revenue officials to increase the tax-GDP ratio by 0.5 percentage point in the next fiscal year.

"I have instructed the officials to raise the tax-GDP ratio to 11 percent from the current 10.5 percent," Saifur told reporters after a meeting of the National Resource Committee on budget preparation and revision at the finance ministry.

He said he had talks with the committee members and government officials concerned on how to

formulate guidelines on the budget for fiscal 2006-07 and also reviewed the budget for the current fiscal year.

He also hinted at downsizing the annual development programme (ADP) for fiscal 2005-06 and denied allegations that the next budget is going to be an election-oriented one.

However, finance ministry sources said the government has estimated a budget outlay of around Tk 68,250 crore for fiscal 2006-07 as against the original budget of Tk 64,383 crore of the current fiscal year.

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr

Salehuddin Ahmed, Finance Secretary Siddiqur Rahman Chowdhury, Chairman of National Board of Revenue (NBR) Khairuzzaman Chowdhury, Economic Relations Division Secretary Ismail Zabihullah and Planning Commission Member AHM Abul Kashem were present at the meeting.

NBR officials said the country's tax-GDP ratio is quite low compared to the ratio in other countries. Bangladesh's tax-GDP ratio is one of the lowest among the developing and least developed countries.