Spreading financial literacy among the poor people and use of microfinance

The concept of microfinance started getting popularity as a successful poverty alleviation tool since 1904. More than 100 years later, it is now being used as an effective mechanism to reduce poverty of the poor, the ultra-poor and the marginalised...

Turkey\\\'s Erdogan fights for his throne by battling Kurds - but will voters buy it?

If democracy is the art of compromise, then Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no democrat. And if democracy means listening to the electorate and respecting the spirit of parliamentary procedure - then he fails on these criteria as well....

Those who are in schools are not learning much

Among some of the achievements that Bangladesh takes pride in is the rate of increase in school enrolment. While we have sufficient reasons to be elated over the good news on increased enrolment in schools over the last decades, especially...

Stocks edge higher with low turnover

Stocks closed higher on Wednesday with turnover falling slightly as investors followed cautious strategy. DSEX, the benchmark index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went up marginally by 12.72 points or 0.26 per cent to end above the 4,800-mark to...

DSE, CSE open positive

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) saw upward trend in early hour of trading on Wednesday amid modest volatility, the fourth session of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Govt to devise strategies for curbing essentials\\\' prices

Against a backdrop of soaring prices of most essential commodities, the government will sit with its officials concerned and stakeholders soon in a bid to devise strategies for keeping the prices stable in local markets. The meeting is scheduled to...

When 30mm rain is enough to inundate

On July 27, 2009 night Dhaka city had experienced 330-milimetre (mm) rainfall in just seven hours, a record in 60 years. With one of the world's worst drainage systems, the entire city went under knee to waist deep water and...

The status of ethnic minorities in BCIM

Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar (BCIM) Region Cooperation Forum, earlier known as "Kunming Initiative", was established in 1999 with the objective of enhancing physical connectivity and boosting trade relations among the member countries. One of the major objectives of the...

Countdown to September summit on SDGs

After three years of hectic negotiations, countries of the world have apparently reached a consensus on implementing the new development blueprint termed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The member states of the  United Nations (UN), numbering 193, agreed on August 02...

Stock end flat amid volatility

Stocks closed flat on Tuesday after witnessing modest volatility as investors closely observed the global stock market trend. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 1.06 points or 0.02 per cent to settle at...

DSE, CSE plunge at opening

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed downward trend in early hour of trading on Tuesday amid choppy trading, the third session of the week. Market insiders said the investors somewhat worried following sharp fall...

Separate company to handle BR container service

The government has taken a move to form a separate company to deal with the existing container service of Bangladesh Railway (BR) to further improve its service delivery system, officials said. According to them, the ministry of railways (MoR) in...

Ten new products coming under mandatory standards certification

The list of products under Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) mandatory standard-certification system is being revised with inclusion of ten new items, officials said. In the process of list updating, in keeping with the present perspective of consumers' interest,...

Increasing economic cooperation with China

There are good news and bad news everywhere, and Bangladesh is no exception. As usually happens here, the steady flow of good news in the country can hardly be sustained for many pitfalls - sometimes   because of bad and unacceptable...

Whither primary education?

If education is the 'fountain-head' of socio-economic and political development, then surely primary education should be viewed as its foundation. The famous adage - 'as you sow, so you reap' - possibly points to the importance of primary education both...

US politics: Trump tsunami hits Republican Party

Until May, Jeb Bush appeared set to become the unanimous choice of the Republicans for the 2016 US presidential election. He wanted to carve out for himself a candidature independent of his illustrious lineage so that he would not appear...

Challenges for Yuan in going global

China's bid to join the IMF's Special Drawing Rights (SDR) has drawn attention of the international media in the last few months. The SDR is an international reserve asset comprising an elite league of currencies - the US Dollar, British...

Stocks end lower amid sluggish turnover

Stocks extended their losing streak for the second straight session on Monday with turnover dipping below Tk 4.0 billion-mark as investors remained cautious. The market opened with a positive note, but failed to sustain as the session progressed. DSEX, the...

Stocks open positive with volatility

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed positive trend in early hour of trading on Sunday amid choppy trading, the second session of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by...

Core inflation keeps on rising in recent months

The central bank bolstered monitoring of the key economic indicator as core inflation kept rising in recent months, climbing to 7.37 per cent in July, officials said. A month before, in June, the rate of inflation was 6.74 per cent....

Govt starts gauging impact of euro-area crisis on exports

The government has started assessing the impact of eurozone crisis on the country's exports to devise coping strategies for the external shock, officials said. As part of the exercise, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has sought recommendations from the Commerce...

A case for women-only rural markets

Bangladesh's is still a rural economy where 78 per cent of the population lives in the villages. The village people have their own styles of production and consumption. If we look at the countryside, it can be seen that there...

China and Korea haunted by Japan\\\'s imperial past

Contrary to the popular expectations in much of Far Northeast and Southeast Asia, Japanese rightwing prime minister Shinzo Abe did not say anything new on August 14 evening on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the end of World...

People feel pinch of onion price

This country is not very famous for keeping prices of essentials stable. Actually, businesspeople call the shot. Whether such people cannot be tamed because of their overwhelming representation in the country's parliament is a question that lurks quite ominously, though....

No improvement in tailback in sight

A  few days back, the authorities concerned launched a drive against unfit vehicles, particularly the passenger buses, plying the city streets. Mobile courts headed by magistrates seized a number of vehicles and imposed fines on their owners. The immediate response...

DSE turnover dips below Tk5b-mark again

Stocks returned to the red Sunday after three sessions, with turnover dipping below Tk 5.0 billion-mark after one month, as investors were reluctant to make fresh investments. The market opened higher in the morning but failed to sustain. DSEX, the...

DSE, CSE open optimistic

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) witnessed upward trend in early hour of trading on Sunday, the opening day of the week. DSEX, the prime index of the DSE, went up by 20.64 points or...

Two highway projects listed for likely ADB funding

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has incorporated Hatikamrul-Rangpur and Dhaka-Sylhet highway four-lane projects into its prospective lending recipe, as these routes get aligned with a proposed continental connectivity.       Officials said the assurance of funding was given in a recent letter...

China to fund Mongla port modernisation

A Chinese state-owned company has agreed to fund and help implement a big project of Tk 20 billion aiming to modernise and expand facilities at Mongla port, officials said. In this connection, the Mongla Port Authority (MPA) and China National...

Poverty alleviation and human resource development under MDG

The government of Bangladesh is strongly committed to reducing poverty, improving human development and reducing inequality. One can find reflection of the commitment in the Perspective Plan of Bangladesh (2010-2021): Making Vision 2021 Reality. The Perspective Plan envisions, "Bangladesh will...