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China wins more ASEAN friends as the US watches

Sayed Kamaluddin | 2016-11-26 00:00:00

The outgoing American President Barack Obama's proactive diplomacy in the Southeast and East Asian region to consolidate his Asia pivot policy and wean over the ASEAN members from China's influence is apparently in trouble. Obama's Asia pivot was launched in...

Prioritising Dhaka\'s urban transport system

Helal Uddin Ahmed | 2016-11-26 00:00:00

Robert Gallagher, a British transport planner, worked in Bangladesh for much of his career.  He lectured in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) for five years, and later carried out a...

Efficient bus services in city still a far cry

Munima Sultana | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

The capital city is unlikely to get a disciplined and efficient public transport service soon with buses on 'single-route single-company' basis, as the authorities concerned are yet to take adequate measures in this regard. Official sources said a favourable environment...

BIWTA recommends raise in maintenance cost to Tk 300m

Syful Islam | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) has recommended the government to propose Indian authorities for increasing the annual maintenance cost of waterways of Bangladesh under the Indo-Bangla water protocol. It suggested that the amount should be raised to Tk...

Farm loans up by Tk 6.61b

Siddique Islam | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

Farm-loan disbursement grew by over 14 per cent or Tk 6.61 billion in the first four months of the current fiscal year, suiting government agricultural policy. Much of the credit for the steady growth in agricultural credits, officials said, goes...

BEZA to ready 20 SEZs by 2018

Talha Bin Habib | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

The building of 20 special economic zones (SEZs) will be completed by 2018 as about 40 per cent work there have been completed so far, officials said.   "About 40 per cent of the construction work of SEZs has been completed....

Youth civic engagement: Challenges and opportunities

S. M. Rayhanul Islam | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

There is a saying: 'History is written by the old, but made by the young'. Young people are the most strong, self-confident, creative and productive guiding force of any nation. Given an enabling environment, young women and men are both...

What purpose new DU departments serve?

Nilratan Halder | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

Amazing has been the advancement of science and technology. Never before in human history has there been so wide an application of science to technological development and innovation as it currently is. What is even more satisfying is that the...

Demonetisation drama in India

Syed Ashraf Ali | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

Before the shock waves generated by Donald Trump's triumph over Hillary Clinton in the US presidential race of November 08 died down, Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi detonated a bombshell of sort by demonetising all 500 and 1000 rupee bank...

Globalisation in a time of populism

Hasnat Abdul Hye | 2016-11-25 00:00:00

To say that globalisation is at a crossroads would be an understatement; it is very much under threat. Even in its heydays globalisation had its critics among whom were policy makers, economists and hard-nosed trade unionists. Of late they have...

Law minister leads team to Manila Saturday

Siddique Islam | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

A high-powered delegation headed by Law Minister Anisul Huq is scheduled to leave for Manila Saturday to expedite efforts with the Philippines to retrieve the remaining $65.75 million of Bangladesh's heisted foreign-exchange reserves. During the November 28-30 visit, the five-member...

Products for trade under APTA likely to double

Syful Islam | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

The number of products for low-tariff trading under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), previously known as the Bangkok Agreement, may more than double as the member-countries finally agreed to conclude soon the fourth-round negotiations, officials said. Trade ministers of the...

Women-run SMEs face 60pc finance gap: Study

Munima Sultana | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

Despite improvements in policy support to women entrepreneurs in small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the financing gap between the demand and supply of loans remains as high as 60 per cent, according to a new study. It showed that women's...

BD fairly finishes halfway through achieving MDGs

kabirhumayan10@gmail.com | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

Bangladesh has outshone many others in accomplishing many of the MDGs tasks with national poverty cut to 24.8 per cent against the targeted 29 per cent by 2015, government evaluation report said Wednesday. The progress report, however, recognizes that the...

BSEC to set new provision for use of IPO proceeds

Mohammad Mufazzal | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

The securities' regulator has moved to set a new provision to make use of proceeds from the Initial Public Offerings (IPO) available to investors through the websites of listed companies and stock exchanges. The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC)...

PMO asks ministries to decide fate of incomplete projects

Rezaul Karim | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has asked the ministries concerned to decide within one month the fate of incomplete and abandoned projects taken up during the period from 1996 to 2001 and from 2009 to 2015, officials said. The PMO...

A platform for newMUNers

Albab Maswood | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

MUN minutes, a collaborative effort from Advent Initiative and PAUDCs (Primeasia University Debate Club) event titled MUN minutes took place in the university premises on November 12 this year. The event was a combined workshop and practice of MUN (Model...

Reclaiming rights of pedestrians

Rehnuma Jahan Islam | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

Every morning as I travel to work on a rickshaw, I almost run over pedestrians, narrowly avoid multiple head on collisions with reckless cars, bang my head a few times into the hood of the rickshaw as it suddenly falls...

Strengthening bilateral economic cooperation with Iran

Nabil Azam Dewan | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

Since the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was signed between Iran and the P+1 countries (United States, Russia, China, United Kingdom, France and Germany; along with the European Union) last year, the world has seen light at the end...

Farm waste to energy: Overcoming challenges

Salman Zahir | 2016-11-24 00:00:00

Energy scarcity has been identified as a strong constraint on the growth of the economy, hampering the quality of life. Bangladesh, a fast growing economy with depleting gas reserves (10-15 years left), might run into a critical condition soon. Understandably,...

Oil prices: To reduce or not to reduce?

Shamsul Huq Zahid | 2016-11-23 00:00:00

The latest indications suggest that some key government policymakers are toeing different lines on the issue of petroleum products' pricing. A few, among whom Finance Minister AMA Muhith is included, are  willing to pass, at least, partially the benefit of...

‘Dhaka to make short-term gain’

Asjadul Kibria | 2016-11-23 00:00:00

US president-elect Donald Trump's announcement to quit the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal on his first day in the office might bring a short-term relief for Bangladesh, opined a senior economist. But such an announcement signalled his determination to move...

NBR wants mobile cos to pay Tk 2.69b VAT arrears

Doulot Akter Mala | 2016-11-23 00:00:00

Government's revenue authority asked the mobile operators to pay forthwith Tk 2.69 billion in VAT arrears against 2G licence spectrum charge trapped in complexities. Officials said the Value Added Tax (VAT) wing of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) pressed...

Mona Lisa of Afghan War: A chess pawn in Sub-continental Great Game

Zeenat Khan from Maryland, USA | 2016-11-23 00:00:00

Back in 2010, in an opinion article I described a picture of a group of displaced people of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. In the photograph, there were about thirteen of them walking in a single file, along a narrow winding...

Climate change adaptation: Grants, not loans

Md. Tahmid Zami, Md. Joynal Abedin, Rakib Rahman and Shituma Tajrin | 2016-11-23 00:00:00

World Bank (WB) President Jim Yong Kim, during his Dhaka trip on October 16-17, 2016 announced a major investment to help Bangladesh adapt to climate change. Under the plan, the bank would invest US$ 2 billion in the next three...

BB asks new banks to stop \'aggressive\' lending

Siddique Islam | 2016-11-22 00:00:00

The central bank warned nine new private commercial banks (PCBs) against 'aggressive lending' for the sake of discipline in the country's banking sector. Officials said the PCBs in question at a meeting Monday were also asked to cut down volumes...

BLPA yet to get go-ahead to build new land ports

Talha Bin Habib | 2016-11-22 00:00:00

The construction work of three new land ports is likely to be delayed as the Planning Commission (PC) has yet to give approval to the proposals sent by the Bangladesh Land Port Authority (BLPA), officials said. The BLPA sent development...

President Xi\'s Peruvian visit to usher new chapter in bilateral ties

People's Daily of China | 2016-11-22 00:00:00

Chinese President Xi Jinping's upcoming state visit to Peru is of milestone significance in bilateral ties, Chinese Ambassador to Peru Jia Guide wrote in an article published in the People's Daily early this week, before Xi kicked off his tour....

How China looks at opportunities & challenges of Internet

People's Daily of China | 2016-11-22 00:00:00

The goal of building an equal, innovative, open and safer cyberspace that Chinese President Xi Jinping put forward for global Internet governance at the start of the World Internet Conference (WIC) injects Chinese wisdom into the construction of a cyberspace...

Latin America\'s cooperation with China to become deeper and closer

Alicia Barcena | 2016-11-22 00:00:00

Chinese President Xi Jinping's Latin American trip will be a milestone for both sides to deepen their exchanges and cooperation. The UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) holds great expectations from Xi's visit. China is the...