DHAKA, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The Bangladeshi interim government has declared tax operations as "essential services," in a bid to better safeguard local and foreign trade and commerce.

Bangladesh's Ministry of Labor and Employment issued a gazette notification in this regard Tuesday.

According to the notification, tax operations are declared as essential operations for meeting revenue collection targets of the government and for keeping the financial management of the government dynamics.

The Bangladeshi interim government last month through an ordinance created two new divisions by abolishing the country's National Board of Revenue in an apparent move to modernize tax administration and boost revenue collection.

The ordinance stated that the Revenue Policy Division will monitor the implementation of tax laws while the Revenue Management Division will mainly look into revenue collection.

The restructuring reportedly followed a key condition set by the International Monetary Fund to separate tax policy from administration.

The Washington-based lender has long pushed for tax reforms to raise Bangladesh's tax-to-GDP ratio, one of the lowest in Asia. ■