At today’s book launch, economists noted that Bangladesh’s economic progress was not the result of a miracle.
They stated that the primary forces behind Bangladesh’s economic growth during the first 50 years of the country’s independence were farmers, industrial workers, particularly those in the garment industry, and Bangladeshi immigrants living overseas.
They did, however, believe that their growing contribution would not continue along the same trend in the upcoming years.
At the book’s luncheon function at the city’s Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), “Fifty Years of Bangladesh: Economy, Politics, Society, and Culture,” the economists made this observation.
The multifaceted aspects of Bangladesh’s development journey, including its economic and social transformation and political and cultural contestations, are depicted in the book, which was released by Routledge of London in November 2023.
The book offers fresh factual data along with a critical examination of the actors, processes, and behaviors that have shaped Bangladesh’s change.
The book, which is divided into six sections, offers a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, and connected account of the Bangladeshi story.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman of the Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) and a former adviser to the caretaker government, stated at the opening today that in addition to the economic engine, a few other variables have significantly influenced the nation’s progress.
“That is, the revolution of human personality. It is the tendency in humans to survive or fight against the odds. Due to this trend, the people of the country are moving forward,” he added.
Former special adviser on employment at the International Labour Office in Geneva, Rizwanul Islam, claimed that Bangladesh’s economic progress was not the result of a miracle.
Furthermore, he continued, labor was the primary factor in achieving GDP growth.
He claimed that the agriculture sector contributed significantly to the strong growth in the gross domestic product because of the availability of highly productive rice seed.
He maintained that the revolution had happened covertly and that the main drivers had been the remittances sent home by foreign migrant workers and industrial workers.
Speakers at the event included CPD Chairman Professor Rehman Sobhan, Executive Director of the South Asian Network of Economic Modelling and book author Selim Raihan, CPD Distinguished Fellow Mustafizur Rahman, and former lead economist of the World Bank’s Dhaka office Zahid Hussain.
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