The interim government's decision to increase food aid through vulnerable group feeding assistance during the lean days of ban on fishing to the fishermen families is a commendable move. Notably, the fishing ban comes on two occasions for 22 days between October 12 and November 2 to protect m
In rural Bangladesh, the challenges facing agriculture are many and varied. Among these, the marketability of perishable products like potatoes presents a persistent problem. This is compounded by a lack of adequate transportation infrastructure that does not allow farmers to carry their produce di
Thunderstorms that batter South Asia each monsoon season now have a political echo: waves of popular revolt are sweeping away powerful regimes. After Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal -- and to a lesser yet significant extent Indonesia -- mass upsurge by citizens has brought the collapse, or at leas
The Himalayan nation of Nepal is returning to relative normality after days of violent protests spearheaded by the Nepali youth, more particularly the Gen Z generation. It all started with a government's decision to ban 26 popular social media platforms on September 4. This triggered widespread str
The country's trade in services has been gaining momentum over the years, a trend that is not in line with the services sector's dominant contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP). However, the share of services in total external trade has doubled to around 10 per cent, a significant leap fr
It was nothing short of a tectonic shift in student politics. A student wing of a political party with a controversial past has achieved a landslide victory in a university where it was barred from political activity barely a year ago. The scale of the win stunned both the general public and politi
The Small and Medium Enterprises (MSEs) account for the majority of businesses all across the world. According to the World Bank (WB), this sector represents 90 per cent businesses with 50 per cent of employment worldwide. Bangladesh is no exception to this. Nearly 10 million SMEs in this country c
Speakers at the recent National Conference on Social Security rightly underscored the urgency of expanding social safety net coverage in urban areas. Numerous studies over the years have shown that while rural poverty is on the decline, urban poverty is rising, driven largely by the continuou
Among the different sectors of the economy, the services sector stands out as one of the least understood and least documented areas. Despite being a major contributor to the GDP, the sector has long remained a grey area where reliable information and systematic data are conspicuously absent. Unlik
In a country where the average household's diet depends overwhelmingly on rice, its price is more than an economic signal; it is a barometer of political stability, social equity, and the state's administrative competence. Over the past year, the prices of rice, the main staple, has confounded exp
Bangladesh is trailing behind its South Asian neighbours in achieving UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to the UN's Sustainable Development Report 2025, Bangladesh ranked 114th among 167 nations globally and scored 63.9 out of 100 on the score card of SDG index and positioned it
Not long ago, the Biman Bangladesh Airlines reported its highest ever annual profit of Tk 9.37 billion. The record earnings in the financial year (FY) 2024-25 seemed at first to offer a rare moment of good news for the national carrier and a reason for celebration. But instead of being welcomed wit
The just published flagship Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2026 has marked a new dimension to the educational excellence. There is a clear shift in knowledge creation and research in favour of Asia. It must, however, be acknowledged that the established old bastions or powerhou
