Eve-teasing, a social curse

Islam regards women with the sincerest epitome of respect, whereas in Hinduism females are the face of deity. However, in contradiction, females are in a rather peripheral position in the societal structure of Bangladesh. The social system that accommodates the...

Joint efforts to eradicate social anarchy

Who knew that the very first day of Bangla New Year will make lives of many women risky? Who could imagine that your morning will start with ‘Panta-Ilish’ and end up with horrifying mob molestation in the area which has...

Hillary joins the presidency race: \\\'I am no shrinking violet\\\'

I don't know about you, but I had enough of Hillary Rodham Clinton - the Yankee feminist, a doting grandma to Charlotte and again a presidential candidate for 2016. For over two decades she has been frolicking in and around...

Making the cities child-friendly

The election to three city corporations-Dhaka North, Dhaka South and Chittagong-were held on April 28 last. The mayoral candidates in their election manifestos committed to address many issues, but there was no clear commitment about how to address child rights,...

Holding embassies responsible for export targets - a fallacy

The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), like a broken record stuck on pin in a gramophone of the olden days, regularly brings out one issue in the media to embarrass the Bangladesh embassies abroad. The issue is a report card on...

Classified loans in farm sector mark sharp rise

The volume of classified loans in the agriculture sector has marked a significant rise in nine months up to March because of lower recovery mainly due to political unrest early this year, officials said. The non-performing loans (NPLs) of farmers...

Govt may backtrack from taxing BTRC income

The government is likely to backtrack from imposing taxes on the income of Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) as Prime Minister's Office (PMO) authorities found the fiscal measure as paradoxical. Prime Minister's Economic Adviser, Dr Mashiur Rahman, in a letter,...

JBC: an entity that earns less, spends more

It is a sorry tale of the state-owned life insurer -- the Jiban Bima Corporation (JBC). The Corporation that once enjoyed monopoly in the country's insurance business has reportedly become extravagant, of late, when its revenue earning has shrunk substantially....

Revised guideline to allow all telcos to take part

The telecom regulator is revising the existing guidelines on the proposed spectrum auction allowing any interested company to take part in the bidding slated for May 27 this year, officials said. "We've already drafted a revised guideline for inviting the...

Earnings of many listed cos decline in Q3

Earnings of many listed companies, which so far made financial disclosures (un-audited) for the third quarter (Q3) of this fiscal year, have declined significantly during January to March, 2015 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Experts blamed...

The 2015-16 budget and stock market

One of the important determinants of economic development of a country is an effective and strong stock market. Stock market is globally recognised as one of the best tools for accelerating economic growth by accumulating savings for investment in productive...

Nepal to grant preferential tariff facility for 50 goods

Nepal has agreed to grant preferential tariff facility to 50 Bangladeshi products against Dhaka's duty-free offer to 108 products of the Himalayan nation, sources said. The consensus was reached at a meeting of the technical committees on the Ministries of...

Central bank to take actions against unauthorised money transfer

The central bank plans to take measures to stop the unauthorised transfer of money using the mobile phone banking services across the country. A Bangladesh Bank official said the rules for mobile phone financial services are being breached in through...

Govt likely to reopen Mongla, Ghasiakhali channel by June

The government could dredge some 40 per cent of the Mongla-Ghasiakhali river channel in last four months after an oil-tanker sank in the Shela river inside the Sundarbans in December, spilling 350,000 litres of furnace oil, officials said. Some 16...

Japan’s Kobelco enters Bangladesh\\\'s steel mkt

World's renowned Japanese steelmaker, Kobelco brand, has entered Bangladesh's steel market with its welding products this week, its official said. Earlier, Kobelco has partnered with a local company-- Tsi Marine Ltd-- to market its welding products here. "The first shipment...

ADR an effective tool for mediation

Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries in the world where the level of respect and awareness regarding social justice and human rights are still in a bad situation. The condition is worse for the underprivileged groups, especially for indigenous...

Why isn\\\'t global economy fit for women?

Our world is out of balance. It is both wealthier and more unequal today than at any time since the Second World War. We are recovering from a global economic crisis - but that recovery has been jobless. We have...

Tariff and rice import

Bangladesh's rice regime is partly influenced by policies pursued in other countries, especially in next-door neighbour India.  In this context, one can possibly recall that the country benefited hugely from imports of rice by the private sector in 1998. But,...

Hats off to the incredible Bangladesh Tigers

The thumping victory of Bangladesh Tigers in the three ODIs (One Day International) and the T-20 over the much-vaunted Pakistan cricket team has made the nation proud - very proud indeed. It truly mirrors the spectacular achievements made by Bangladesh...

Bangladesh and foreign investment

There is almost cut-throat competition among countries to attract foreign investment all over the world. It makes no difference whether a country is developed, developing or least developed in this respect. Every country is ready to embrace foreign investors with...

Stock market stakeholders want to do it on their own

Country's stock-market stakeholders urged the government Sunday to amend a newly-introduced legal provision to allow companies to deduct, on their own, the taxes from their capital gains earned from bourses.            They argued that authorising companies and partnership firms to estimate...

Handicraft policy places stress on promotional campaign

The government is likely to intensify marketing efforts to boost export of craft products after it finalises the draft handicraft policy. Under the initiative, all the commercial missions of Bangladesh abroad will display the country's handicraft products for marketing in...

Local firms tap into hospital furniture segment

Bangladeshi furniture makers have found a niche in producing hospital products,  encouraged by demand in the country's booming healthcare industry, industry insiders say. They said local companies have been manufacturing hospital furniture, now capable of meeting almost half of the...

Tall promises made not to be kept

They are promising the sky for the voters. Candidates for the city corporation elections should know that the tall promises made are not only beyond their capacity to deliver but also beyond their jurisdiction. Let alone the councillors, the elected...

Letting the market play by its own rules

When the government and the multilateral donors are contradicting each other's projection over the possible growth rate of the economy during the current financial year, the stock market, one of the key indicators of the economic health of a country,...

Tortuous rules dealing with tax evasion up for a change

Tax intelligence seeks to create a legal window for taxpayers to pay their evaded taxes, detected by the taxmen, in a simpler way without having to pass through a tortuous process. The Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) under the National Board...

Policy being drafted to ease gold import

The government is set to formulate a national gold import policy soon to facilitate expansion of jewellery business in the country, a senior official at the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) told the FE Saturday. The local jewellers for long have...

In search of \\\'dream\\\' clunkers

Tamanna Mitu has been pushing her banker spouse to buy a car. For the young couple, it was a long-cherished dream. But it was price that stood in the way. The bargain-hunting couple, who live near the capital's commercial hub...

Of rating, rating assessors and rating process

The rating exercises by well-known international rating agencies are on. The Moody's has upgraded the outlook on India's sovereign rating to positive from stable while the Fitch has retained the stable outlook. The two rating agencies noted many positives with...

All is not well in the government-owned banks

Chairman of the Sonali Bank Ltd, Dr A H M Habibur Rahman, has resigned eight months before the expiry of his tenure. This does not sound well either for Sonali Bank or the banking sector in the public sector. This...