Waiting for the metamorphosis
Thursday, 16 December 2010
BANGLADESH observes today its 40th Victory Day with due fervour and enthusiasm. The people will pay their homage to those valiant sons of the soil whose sacrifice and sufferings made it possible for its triumphant emergence as a sovereign entity in the comity of nations on this day in 1971. The valiant struggle of the freedom fighters against the occupation army of the then Pakistan and their henchmen (collaborators) during the nine-month-long bloody war of independence is a source of inspiration for the entire nation. And the struggle for independence involved a long-run process under the guidance of very matured political leadership. Without such a political leadership, it would have, under no circumstances, been possible to prepare the ground well for people's total involvement, directly or indirectly, in the War of Independence.
This momentous occasion is also a befitting occasion for the people to take stock of how far this nation of about 150 million people now-- then 75 million -- has progressed in these last nearly four decades. The period is obviously too small in the infinity of time. But in assessing the ups and downs, rise and fall of nations, this span of forty years is not inconsequential either. Countries and nations at a similar level of economic attainments in the seventies with what is today's Bangladesh, have become developed or semi-developed nations. But Bangladesh unfortunately continues to lag behind.
This is not to say that Bangladesh's achievements in many areas, notwithstanding all its adversities, are not mentionable. This country has developed a world-class apparel industry in this period and made giant strides in increasing agricultural productivity to be able to almost feed its entire doubled population. It has had other successes also in social sectors and in building an industrial base for producing many essential consumer as well as intermediate products and even some capital equipment. It is currently showing promise in new areas like shipbuilding, pharmaceuticals, information technologies (IT) and outsourcing business.
A number of projections have been made about Bangladesh becoming the next Asian tiger. But those projections are yet to become realities. The current poverty rate of some 40 per cent of its people may lead the newly arrived outsiders to this country into thinking that the fable of Sonar Bangla (Golden Bengal) is possibly a tall tale only. But the ones who know, they know it that Bangladesh has the potentials to take its place among the world's major economies like in the ancient times. This is borne out by a number of recent international rankings exercises. Those have glimpsed such a future or possibility for Bangladesh. But the same would depend entirely on how well the government -- and the successive ones -- here can truly play the part of a facilitator in support of the dynamic business and entrepreneurial classes which are growing in this country.
Bangladesh has developed superior entrepreneurial, business and managerial skills and classes who can be relied on to excel in various forms of enterprising. They are raring to go at top speed but are being held back from governmental failures in supplying them with adequate energy and for infrastructural and institutional weaknesses. Once government in Bangladesh starts addressing these factors rapidly and effectively and more importantly the sooner this country can overcome crony syndrome or remove all kleptrocratic trails in its economic governance in particular, it would then likely swiftly move on to a higher growth path, propelled by the real enterprising abilities of its people. Thus, the real challenge for Bangladesh is to have good, effective and visionary governance to prepare for its take-off and to sustain the momentum when it has taken off.
This momentous occasion is also a befitting occasion for the people to take stock of how far this nation of about 150 million people now-- then 75 million -- has progressed in these last nearly four decades. The period is obviously too small in the infinity of time. But in assessing the ups and downs, rise and fall of nations, this span of forty years is not inconsequential either. Countries and nations at a similar level of economic attainments in the seventies with what is today's Bangladesh, have become developed or semi-developed nations. But Bangladesh unfortunately continues to lag behind.
This is not to say that Bangladesh's achievements in many areas, notwithstanding all its adversities, are not mentionable. This country has developed a world-class apparel industry in this period and made giant strides in increasing agricultural productivity to be able to almost feed its entire doubled population. It has had other successes also in social sectors and in building an industrial base for producing many essential consumer as well as intermediate products and even some capital equipment. It is currently showing promise in new areas like shipbuilding, pharmaceuticals, information technologies (IT) and outsourcing business.
A number of projections have been made about Bangladesh becoming the next Asian tiger. But those projections are yet to become realities. The current poverty rate of some 40 per cent of its people may lead the newly arrived outsiders to this country into thinking that the fable of Sonar Bangla (Golden Bengal) is possibly a tall tale only. But the ones who know, they know it that Bangladesh has the potentials to take its place among the world's major economies like in the ancient times. This is borne out by a number of recent international rankings exercises. Those have glimpsed such a future or possibility for Bangladesh. But the same would depend entirely on how well the government -- and the successive ones -- here can truly play the part of a facilitator in support of the dynamic business and entrepreneurial classes which are growing in this country.
Bangladesh has developed superior entrepreneurial, business and managerial skills and classes who can be relied on to excel in various forms of enterprising. They are raring to go at top speed but are being held back from governmental failures in supplying them with adequate energy and for infrastructural and institutional weaknesses. Once government in Bangladesh starts addressing these factors rapidly and effectively and more importantly the sooner this country can overcome crony syndrome or remove all kleptrocratic trails in its economic governance in particular, it would then likely swiftly move on to a higher growth path, propelled by the real enterprising abilities of its people. Thus, the real challenge for Bangladesh is to have good, effective and visionary governance to prepare for its take-off and to sustain the momentum when it has taken off.