Trump and modern-day political comebacks

For students and researchers of history, political comebacks in our times make for interesting, even thoughtful reading. The return of Donald Trump to the White House, despite all the legal entanglements he has been caught in since he left the...

Removing hurdles to investment in SEZs

An economic zone, by definition, is a special designated area within a country's national borders. It is created with its own set of applicable laws to encourage and enhance business and trade investment, and job creation. The primary reason behind...

ILO urges govt to end GPEU case sans delay

The Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA) of the International Labour Organization (ILO) has urged the government of Bangladesh to ensure that the case of Grameenphone Employees Union (GPEU) pending before a labour court in Dhaka is concluded without further...

Consultant to be appointed in Feb

CHATTOGRAM, Nov 11: Bangladesh Railway (BR) is set to appoint a consultant for the construction of a new rail-cum-road bridge project over the River Karnaphuli at Kalurghat by February of next year. The tender for this project will be released...

Hand-to-mouth labourers' wages to get VAT waiver

Some relief from the catch-all tax dragnet may be forthcoming for people on the lowest rung of society as the interim government contemplates waiving VAT on day-labourers' wages. Officials say the measure is being mulled over to address longstanding inconsistencies...

Budget loans to give breathing space to economy: IMF

An exigent switch from project aid to budget-support loans from bilateral and multilateral development financiers in the interim period will yield some breathing space for Bangladesh's economy, the IMF observes. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has noted that apart from...

Utilise your winter in a productive way

Being unemployed might be one of the most challenging situations in life. It may be highly stressful to deal with unstable finances, a lack of routine, and the mental strain that job-seeking takes. Especially in this season, when a person...

Bridging MSME financing gaps with customised digital credit scoring

Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are known as the lifeblood of the world economy. The presence of MSMEs in every economic channel develops forward and backward linkages for large businesses as well. According to World Bank data, SMEs contribute...

NBFIs show signs of distress, only four keeping up growth

Only four non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) out of 16 secured a higher profit year-on-year in January-September this year, driven by an increase in return from government securities. IDLC Finance, DBH Finance, United Finance, and LankaBangla Finance stand out in the...

Exploiting the potential of AI integration into Bangladesh university curriculums

AI has become the number one cause of change in industries all over the world, be it in health, manufacturing, agriculture, or even financial services. Its transformative potential is huge, especially in education, as it empowers personalised learning, data-based insights,...

Lend funds to cash-hungry banks

An affluent group of 17 scheduled banks receives instructions from the central bank for urgently extending liquidity support to cash-hungry banks for ensuring stability in the country's banking system. Also, a set of other dos was spelt out at a...

Law enforcement and crime

Though it is the world's 4th most densely populated city with 23,234 people crammed into each square kilometer area, Dhaka is not listed among the most crime-prone cities. The most violent cities considering their high crime rates are in Mexico...

Promoting citizen-centric governance

Citizen-centric governance has been widely practiced by many Western countries, especially during the past few decades. Developing countries like Bangladesh, however, still lag far behind in this area. This mode of governance may be defined as a process in which...

Planned 100-EZ concept on economic expansion ditched

A scheme taken up whimsically by the past regime on developing 100 economic zones across Bangladesh looks derelict now as the post-uprising interim government decides to proceed with select few key EZs.This shift in strategy, supported by the new leadership...

Attacks on performing art

A certain quarter made its opposition to theatre staged at the Shilpakala Academy known by first forcing the scheduled performance of a drama and then attacking the protest rally held on Friday. Whether their objection is to the performance of...

Addressing food insecurity of the vulnerable

In October, food inflation rose to 12.66 per cent from 10.44 in September 2024. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), food inflation drove up general point-to-point inflation to 10.87 per cent in October from 9.92 per cent in...

Coordinating economic growth with SDGs

It is now or never for this country to seek a change in its economic course as Bangladesh espouses a new mode of governance under an interim government headed by Nobel- laureate microfinance pioneer Dr Muhammad Yunus. Whereas Bangladesh has...

Same policy, different outcomes

There is little doubt that Sheikh Hasina and her government have done harm to the national economy by recklessly borrowing money from overseas to invest in low productivity projects. She had increased the national external debt more than five-fold during...

Ctg apparel export up amid unrest in Dhaka

CHATTOGRAM, Nov 09: The export of ready-made garments (RMG) from factories in the port city is increasing as there is no labour unrest here.According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), RMG goods to the tune of $543...

Ballast deficiencies spoil new rail lines

Planning ministry has uncovered severe deficiencies in the ballast thickness of new rail lines built in the Kashiani-Gopalganj-Tungipara region, with the ballast measuring only 100 millimetre at certain points.The current ballast measurement is only 40 per cent of the 250mm...

Relief and concerns

The Financial Express (FE), Bangladesh's first English-language business daily, is entering its 32nd year of publication today in an entirely different domestic political and economic context.An authoritarian regime that had imposed itself on a democracy-loving nation for over a decade...

Non-tax revenue stuck, trails far behind regional ratios

Bangladesh trails far behind regional countries in non-tax revenue netting as the NTR-GDP ratio has stagnated within a peanut 1.0 per cent during the last eight years while the government struggles for deficit financing.This happens to be government's second-largest income...

The making of a global medical leader

The medical scenario in Bangladesh is perceived to be not positive for underpaying freshly graduated medical students and a lack of adequate funding for medical universities and research facilities throughout the country, even though the country has a continuous demand...

Listed SME firms thrive on strong sales, low forex risk

Despite persistent high inflation and macroeconomic challenges, majority of companies listed on the SME Platform of the Dhaka Stock Exchange reported year-on-year profit growth for FY24, with six firms posting double-digit gains.SME companies in sectors such as seafood, poultry and...

Ensuring data reliability

The lack of reliable data has long been a major problem in Bangladesh that hindered the effort to accurately assess the demand and supply of various goods, evaluate macroeconomic performance and set evidence-based policies. For instance, according to the Department...

The wonderful world of financial journalism

Be it a political, social or even religious issue that attracts the headlines of the daily newspapers, money matters almost everywhere. People ultimately want to know how they can enhance their earnings and reduce the costs of living. Beyond their...

The quota movement and reforms thereafter

Bangladesh recently witnessed a powerful student-led uprising initially aimed at addressing unfair job quotas in the public sector. This movement, which ultimately contributed to the ouster of a government, has highlighted core issues relating to governance, education, and job creation...

An environmental imperative

Solar energy stands as the planet's most abundant energy resource, offering an endless supply of renewable power to humanity. Of all renewable energy sources, the inexhaustible solar one is the most dispersed form of energy that can be captured and...

Rectifying India's communal agenda in Bangladesh for balanced bilateral ties

There were contradictions and paradoxes galore in the Indo-Bangladesh relations during the Awami League rule led by Sheikh Hasina between January 2009 and July 2024, which apparently demonstrated a myopic, communal, divisive, and fascistic outlook of the ruling quarters in...

Public choice theory: an overview

Public choice theory has been defined as the application of economic analysis to the study of politics. In other words, its subject is political economy in the classic sense. But one has to hasten to qualify this statement and say...