Traffic mobility in Dhaka City has long been a cause for concern. It has an average speed of 4.8 to 6.4 kilometre per hour--- almost same as the walking speed. Due to this slow speed of vehicles on city roads, the annual loss in productivity stands approximately at $6.5 billion. The problems are kn
The incumbent BNP government's health sector allocation in the proposed budget for the next financial year (FY2026-27) marks a clear departure from those of the previous governments. Historically, the health sector allocations were not only routinely kept below 1.0 per cent of the GDP, but also a l
The protracted debate over Bangladesh's graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category appears to have reached a decisive turning point. The positive response of the United Nations Committee for Development Policy (CDP) to Bangladesh's request for deferment until November 2029 has provi
The fracas over appointment of a chairman to the Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC exposes the disconcerting fact that financial institutions in this country are yet to come of age. Why should its customers---if they are really so--- organise a protest rally opposing a new chairman and demanding reinstate
When Bangladesh is hemmed in by its own economic problems amid energy crisis, high inflation and unemployment, international humanitarian support for the 1.3 million Rohingya refugees that the country has been hosting for about a decade has reportedly started to shrink drastically. The development
Ever since his assumption of the office of the Ministry of Finance, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has been expressing his opposition to the $4.5 billion IMF (International Monetary Fund) loan negotiated in January 2023. During the IMF-World Bank (WB) Spring meetings in April last, the Bangladesh del
The deaths of six newborn infants within a span of just two hours at Ad-Din Medical College Hospital in the capital's Moghbazar area on Wednesday have sent shockwaves across the country. The explanations offered for the tragic deaths of the babies, who were only one to three days old, are deeply di
Called the festival of sacrifice, Eid-ul-Azha is one of the two great festivals of Islamic tenet. It commemorates the total obeisance of Prophet Ibrahim to the Almighty Allah through his willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail. In fact, it was the supreme test a father is put to and both Prophet Ib
The war in the Middle East has exposed deep vulnerabilities of Bangladesh's energy sector, which remains overwhelmingly dependent on imported fossil fuels to meet nearly 95 per cent of its energy demand. The global volatility in fuel prices triggered by geopolitical conflicts has made it clear that
The government is reportedly on the verge of offering a special tax amnesty that would allow non-resident Bangladeshis to invest undisclosed income in select sectors without facing any scrutiny from revenue authorities or other agencies. Officials argue that the initiative could encourage overseas
