The Economic Development of Bangladesh in the Asian Century

Prospects and Perspectives

Quamrul Alam, Atiur Rahman, Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam, Quamrul Alam, Atiur Rahman, Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• Topic: Business
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000222739
• Subtopic: Human Resource Management
• Index: Business

This book explains the macro-drivers of growth behind the economic development of Bangladesh.

Few countries in the developing world have shown as exciting a promise of economic prosperity as Bangladesh. The promising nature of the Bangladeshi economy raises interesting questions pertaining to whether good governance may lead to sustained economic growth. This book looks at the strategic interventions on macro-level, specifically the policy interventions.

This book will be a useful reference to making sense how economic transformation can be strengthened through state-sponsored activities and how states can inculcate a culture of innovation which can be regarded as one of the underpinnings of economic growth.

Part I

Macroeconomic transformations and future business opportunities

1 Journey toward a sustainable and inclusive Bangladesh

Amazing macroeconomic transformation of the economy

Atiur Rahman

Introduction: the beginning from ashes to prosperity

After a prolonged struggle against inequality and injustice, Bangladesh was finally liberated in 1971 under the leadership of Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Throughout his life, Bangabandhu struggled against the tyranny of the oppressors to ensure the right of the poor and marginalized. After the independence of the country, the father of the nation got the chance to lead the country toward his cherished goal of a prosperous Bangladesh. The country’s struggle entered a new phase. Under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh aspired to rebuild its war-ravaged structure and take it from the ashes of war to the express highway of fast-moving inclusive development.

The newborn country was mainly reliant on the fighting spirit and aspirations of the people, who wholeheartedly believed in democracy, social justice and development for all. This indeed was an unprecedented journey of transformation. Yet the challenges were simply too many. The geopolitical environment was not in Bangladesh’s favor. Mother Nature was also not kind to Bangladesh in its early days. Prolonged flood further accentuated the state of the food insecurity, which was already in a precarious condition. Some observers thought Bangladesh was in a Malthusian trap. The US State Department trashed it as an ‘international basket case’. Yet the hardworking and entrepreneurial people of Bangladesh proved all those ‘doomsday’ predictions misplaced and put the country on a thriving trajectory of inclusive growth with drastic fall in poverty and stunning progress in social development indicators. And all this was made possible by prudent leadership providing space for both state and non-state actors collaborating for low-cost development solutions in the context of too many people with too few resources.

Within only eight months of independence, the leadership presented a people’s constitution that emphasized ensuring a fair share of the benefits of development for those belonging to the bottom of the social pyramid. Simultaneously, the leadership pursued a well-coordinated planned development of the newly liberated country. The political commitments of equity and justice were reflected in the First Five-Year Plan of Bangladesh. The leadership was well aware of the resource constraints they faced amid sky-high expectations of the newly liberated people of Bangladesh. Hence, they decided to prudently prioritize the development agenda. This is why Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman wrote, in the foreword to the first Five-Year Plan – “provide a sense of direction and determine the order of priorities within the framework of which coherent and consistent policies and programs could be formulated”.

This was ideally a plan for socio-economic transformation. Professor Nurul Islam, the then Deputy Chair of the Bangladesh Planning Commission, said that – social transformation consistent with the political objectives was the foremost priority of the then government. Three core principles of the economic development strategy of that government can be identified as follows:

• Promoting self-reliance: This emphasized ensuring the most efficient utilization of national resources in rebuilding the country and its economy.
• Welcoming international assistance: Although the then government welcomed c...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Notes on contributors
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• List of abbreviations
• Introduction
• PART I Macroeconomic transformations and future business opportunities
• PART II Banking and financial sector to support future business opportunities
• PART III Capacity building for economic and social development
• Index