Dhaka, June 9 -- Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury on Tuesday told parliament that the government has been implementing a range of refinance schemes to promote youth entrepreneurship and tackle unemployment through soft-term and low-interest financing.

Responding to a starred question from ruling party lawmaker Mohammad Abdul Malek (Sylhet-3) during the question-answer session, the minister said there is currently no interest-free loan scheme for young entrepreneurs operated by Bangladesh Bank.

Khosru said Bangladesh Bank has expanded its Cottage, Micro and Small Enterprise (CMSE) New Entrepreneurs Refinance Scheme from Tk 100 crore to Tk 500 crore using its own funds.

Under the scheme, new entrepreneurs can obtain loans of...