The proposed national budget for fiscal year 2026-27 has earmarked Tk826 crore for the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, marking a modest increase of Tk2 crore from the original allocation of Tk824 crore in the outgoing fiscal year.
Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury unveiled the proposed budget in Parliament on Thursday, setting the overall national budget size at Tk9.38 crore. Of the proposed allocation for theMinistry of Cultural Affairs, Tk 485 crore has been designated for operational expenditure and Tk 341 crore for development expenditure.
Although the allocation is slightly higher than the original budget for FY2025-26, it remains significantly below expectations of cultural stakeholders. The revised budget for the current fiscal year was reduced to Tk753 crore, meaning the proposed allocation represents an increase compared to the revised figure but only a marginal rise from the original allocation.
The culture sector’s share in the proposed national budget stands at less than one percent, accounting for only 0.09 percent of total expenditure.
Despite the limited increase in direct funding for cultural activities, the government has placed renewed emphasis on the creative economy in the proposed budget. In his budget speech, the finance minister said initiatives would be taken to integrate the country’s creative industries into the mainstream economy by harnessing their significant economic potential.
The government plans to implement a range of programmes through collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders to support the growth of cultural and creative industries, according to the budget proposal.
To accelerate the development of the creative economy, the proposed budget has allocated Tk300 crore for the sector. In addition, the government intends to mobilise another Tk500 crore from the Bangladesh Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) fund, potentially creating a combined funding pool of Tk800 crore for creative economy initiatives.
The announcement comes against the backdrop of longstanding demands from cultural activists and organisations, who had called for at least 2 percent of the national budget to be allocated to the culture sector. They argued that greater investment is essential for preserving national heritage, promoting cultural advancement, strengthening social harmony and fostering humanitarian values.
