A recent social media post by a retired military officer, popular musician and recitation artiste, Diken Ahmed, has caused some serious reflection among the citizens of Bangladesh. After spending his military career, he expressed his desire for spending the rest of his life in his native town Khulna. However, fulfilling this desire is becoming increasingly difficult for him since there are few respectable avenues for employment and business in his town. Just like countless numbers of people, he finds himself with no choice but to migrate to Dhaka, the overcrowded, traffic congested and polluted capital of the country.
It is a reflection of a much larger issue. In Bangladesh, there are a vast number of people who desire to live near their family and childhood friends. They would happily live in their hometowns if there were some scopes for employment there. However, necessity seems to be the dominant factor for a majority of the population.
Today Dhaka has become one of the most populous megacities in the world. Every year thousands of new arrivals pour into the city, putting huge strain on housing, transport, healthcare, educational facilities, water resources and other civic amenities.
Nevertheless, migration into Dhaka persists because the economic opportunities exist in the city. Khulna presents a good case study of paucity of opportunities. Once the pride of Bangladesh's industrial city, Khulna had prospered due to its jute mills and other manufacturing plants. Such factories were providing employment not only for locals but also for people in the neighbouring districts.
However, times have changed radically since then. Most of the industries in Khulna that were considered big players are now either shut down or running at much reduced capacity. As a result, the industrial life that once attracted workers to Khulna is largely gone.
Of course, the ramifications of this change go far beyond simple employment figures. Businesses catering to industries are badly affected. Local shops, transport companies, various services and entrepreneurs lack clients. Young university graduates face difficulties in making good use of their education. Many of them opt to move to Dhaka or overseas in search of better prospects.
This trend of Khulna is nothing special. With the exception of Chattogram, most of the industries have been set up in Dhaka and the surrounding regions. All the successive governments promised decentralisation of industries and balanced regional development. Industrial zones, export processing zones and economic zones have been set up in various parts of the country. However, things are yet to change.
Why? Enterprises prefer those regions where there is reliable infrastructure and government services are available. In Dhaka, enterprises receive better access to regulators, banks, logistic networks, specialists and consumers.
Undoubtedly, infrastructure in other regions has been upgraded in recent years. There are new highways, bridges and power supply facilities. However, not all regional cities have created the ecosystem necessary for modern industries. Investors find it difficult to attract specialists, obtain specialised services and deal with regulators there.
Balanced development of regions is no longer the question of equity but the need of economics. There are many cities in Bangladesh that have the potential to become regional economic hubs. For instance, Khulna has access to Mongla Port while Rajshahi has excellent educational facilities and agriculture. Sylhet derives benefits from remittances and tourism, Barishal holds potential in the areas of agro processing and river trade while Rangpur and Mymensingh have agriculture and manufacturing potential.
Investment needs to be made in industrial clusters based on local resources and comparative advantages. Sound infrastructure, continuous energy supply, logistics efficiency, simplification of regulations and provision of good educational facilities should follow industrial growth. Investors need to be convinced that setting up factories outside Dhaka is commercially beneficial.
Private investment needs to be encouraged through fiscal inducements, ease of acquisition of land for industries and faster process of approvals. Special focus should be laid on development of small and medium enterprises that create a large number of jobs.
Bangladesh has witnessed impressive development in terms of economic growth and infrastructure over the last two decades. The next phase of development would require making sure that success is shared by all areas of the country. Making regional cities more vibrant would lessen the strain on Dhaka city.
The vision of living one's entire life in native place should not remain a privilege for only a few; it should be a realistic choice available to every Bangladeshi.
rahmansrdk@gmail.com