ফ োকোস রোইট িং

জুন/২০২২

লেখাগুলো বিবিন্ন পবিকা লেলক সংগৃহীত। উলেখ্য, চাকরী প্রােীলের

জন্য বরলেপস কযাবরয়ার লকয়ালরর বিনামূলে এই লসিাটির জন্য
বরলেপস কযাবরয়ার কর্তপৃ ক্ষ লকান কৃবতত্ব/লেবিট োিী করলে না।
 E-commerce boosts community economies
E-commerce has boosted community economies by connecting local resources and increasing
practice of technology beyond the cities, says a young entrepreneur.

“We should lead the e-commerce next level in terms of assisting new entrepreneurs,
attracting more foreign direct investment in start-ups, and decentralizing facilities to
encourage rural entrepreneurs to participate equally,” Shahriar Hasan, founder and CEO of
Paperfly, said in an exclusive interview with Daily Sun.

The corporate mind of Shahriar Hasan was interested to spread e-commerce's wings beyond
the lines, thus he co-founded Paperfly with a few soul mates as first native logistic-tech firm
to enable a smart ecosystem for lifting local resources to global.

The initiative had reached the taste of e-commerce to village breaking the bracket of city
bound services backed by increasing penetration of internet connectivity.

E-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (e-Cab) is going to hold executive council polls on

this weekend. Young minds like Shahriar comes forward with a panel styled „Ogrogami‟ to
lead the e-commerce industry to next level with prudent policy advocacy
“We're working on connecting all the dots in the e-commerce sector by integrating Facebook-
based companies under the e-Cab umbrella. When this occurs, the contributions of e-
commerce will boost the current growth by a factor of ten. Now, everyone, from women to
youths, is eager to start something new by creating a website or a social media presence
(especially on Facebook). Hundreds of women run e-commerce venture from homes. And for
a creator of a tech-enabled logistic enterprise to efficiently facilitate e-commerce, that's an
incredible experience,” he said.

The tech entrepreneur has illustrious academic training created a strong base for his excellent
and successful career.

After completing his education from renowned institutions like Saint Joseph High School and
Notre Dame College in Dhaka, he received bachelor of business administration in marketing
and management information system from North South University.

E-commerce has emerged as a new window of opportunity for Bangladeshi businesses in last
two years as the global pandemic has triggered a boom in e-commerce in the country and
around the world.

“The growing trend of e-commerce opens new windows for the tech-bound logistic venture
that continued service to reach product to customers‟ door steps amid pandemic situation.
There are many examples that we run offices during holidays to meet market demand,”
Shahriar added.

The Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industries (DCCI) estimated around 166 per cent
growth in e-commerce business in 2020 and the market E-commerce thrives during corona
size is expected to reach $3 billion by 2023.
 “We has a dream to take a local e-commerce company to global arena where it can be called
our very own Amazon. For happening this, the policy for cross border e-commerce is very
important to bring the products from local to global,” Shahriar added.
Around 1600 registered companies are under the umbrella of e-Cab while the market size is
around Tk 160 billion. Commerce Ministry and e-Cab are jointly working on the policy
formulation to support digital businesses in cross-border transactions

The e-commerce founder believes that Bangladeshi youths have potential to develop world-
class e-commerce ventures with proper nursing and mentoring in growth stage.

“Many youths talked to me that they are struggling for seed funding at early stage of running
a e-commerce company. There should be a process to bring the prototype to a funnel to
accelerate them until developing a minimum valuable product. As a founder of a tech-enabled
start-up, I can assure support for new flock in e-commerce,” said Shahriar, an ever-smiling
person to materialise his dreams and aspirations.

Shahriar said the e-commerce industry cannot thing without logistics venture that takes over
the entire responsibility of picking up the product, performing quality check, doing the
packaging, and delivering the goods to customers

Under leadership of Shahiar, the tech-logistic company secured a total of Tk 2.02 billion from
Ecom Express, one of the leading tech-based e-commerce logistics solutions providers in
India with latest round in April this year. This is a nod of acknowledgement to the sincere
efforts and revolutionary ideas of the founders.

Jannatul Islam is with Daily Sun.

 Celebrating 50 years of global environmental movement

The global environmental movement started in 1972, with the first global environment
conference held in Stockholm, Sweden, hosted by then Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme.
Among the heads of governments who also attended was the then Indian Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi, who famously declared that environment and poverty were two major global
issues that needed to be tackled together.

Since that watershed event, the United Nations set up the UN Environment Programme
(UNEP), and different environmental treaties such as the UN Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC), UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD), and UN
Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) have been enforced, which are moving
forward with their respective annual conferences of parties (COPs).

To commemorate the event, the Government of Sweden, together with the Government of
Kenya and UNEP, held Stockholm+50 in Stockholm last week, with participants from around
the world to take stock of the environmental movement and plan the next phase.
I had the privilege of attending the event, and will share some of my reflections on both the
event and what needs to happen next.

The two-day event started with a high-level opening session, where the heads of governments
of Sweden and Kenya as well as the UN secretary-general and the head of UNEP all spoke,
followed by plenary sessions for ministers from many countries, including Bangladesh
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen.

However, the most interesting sessions were the many side events where different groups
such as scientists, women, youth, farmers, indigenous groups, businesses, and many others,
were invited to share their work and views about the future.

The main theme of the overall conference was to reconnect the different strands of the
original environmental movement, which has become divided over the last 50 years, as well
as to galvanise actions at a faster pace involving all stakeholders, rather than just
governments.
I had the opportunity to share my reflections at the concluding session of the conference and
said the following.

While there is much to celebrate in terms of having raised global awareness of the importance
of the environment over the last 50 years, as well as some progress on different aspects such
as climate change, biodiversity and pollution control, the progress has been too little, too late,
and hence we needed to change our approach going forward.

The first task is to stop relying on government leaders to come to global events once a year
and make promises and then go home and fail to implement their own promises. This has
clearly failed as a process. Hence, there is a need to have other global stakeholders involved
in such meetings and in implementing the decisions once they are approved. This includes the
private sector as well as civil society networks and groups.
The second new element that needs to happen is to make the youth more prominent in the
decision-making process, and even the implementation, and not just in advocacy as they are
now. Young people around the world have already demonstrated their capabilities to take
actions and support environmental causes locally as well as globally. I suggested that we turn
the annual pre-COP of the UNFCCC into a Youth COP as well as an "Accountability COP"
henceforth. This was in fact done quite successfully by Italy, who hosted the pre-COP26 in
Milan last year before the main COP26 in Glasgow in November.

The upcoming pre-COP27 will be hosted by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in
Kinshasa prior to COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt this year. This could be an opportunity
to make it into a youth COP again.

Finally, the biggest shift we need to achieve is in the consciousness of every person in the
world, where they start to think of themselves as the citizens of Planet Earth first, before
thinking of themselves as the citizens of their countries and cities. This means that each and
every one of us need to do whatever we can as conscious citizens to preserve our
environment, while also looking after our own development and well-being. This is possible
to do, but will require a major paradigm shift in our thinking and commitment starting from
the individual level upwards.

It is important that we solve these problems in the next 50 years, or the future will be
unthinkable for our children and grandchildren in the coming decades.

Dr Saleemul Huq is director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development
(ICCCAD) at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB).
 Sitakunda Tragedy: Liability, Learn and " An Ongoing System"
The whole country is in mourning over the horrific fire at the BM container depot at
Sitakunda in Chittagong last Saturday night. The death rate is increasing. As of this writing,
the last 49 deaths have been reported. More than five hundred injured. Many more are
missing. Many are crowding at Chittagong Medical Morgue in search of their loved ones.

The situation was not so dire in the early stages of the incident. A terrible explosion occurs
when the fire runs into a container containing hydrogen peroxide. The area trembled for 5 km
with a loud noise. The blast was so terrific that it shattered the windows of nearby buildings.

BM Container Depot belongs to "Smart" Group, a Chittagong-based industrial company. But

fire service personnel were not notified that there was a dangerous combustible chemical,
hydrogen peroxide. As a result, the situation became so terrible. It is learned that the depot
did not have any permission to store the dangerous combustible chemical hydrogen peroxide.
Moreover, the depot is located next to the locality. There is no rule to keep such chemicals in
any place near the locality for business.

Due to the horror of this chemical, the situation has become so dire and it is still out of
control. Moreover, even after so many hours of the incident, the owner has not yet come to
the spot and has not stated what kind of chemicals are in the container depot. As a result,
rescuers could not control the fire.

People from different walks of life, different organizations are coming forward to help.
Chittagong University students ran from the campus in the middle of the night and extended
their helping hand in whatever way they could. They donated blood and helped in various
ways in the hospital. In any calamity, accident and crisis of the country, the student
community of this country comes first. This incident at Sitakunda proved it once again.
Endless gratitude and salute to these people.

In addition to civilians, many fire service personnel were killed in the Sitakunda incident.
Nine firefighters were killed and several others were missing after firefighters tried to control
the blaze. Because if there is a normal fire, the fire service has to use one strategy and if it is
full of chemicals, the fire service has to use another type of strategy to put out the fire. What
"smart" group would take responsibility for the tragic untimely death of so many people by
keeping a horrible combustible substance like hydrogen peroxide without permission near the
locality! What will be the punishment? It can be seen that the owners of the industries of this
country have a close relationship with the government which is in power.

The owner of Smart Group also holds a position in the current ruling party. At the end of the
day, nothing happens to these people. They "manage" everything with money and power.
And our judiciary system loses to money and power. I need to discuss another issue in the
reality of the Sitakunda fire incident. That is-- to ensure advanced and modern equipments for
the Fire Service of this country. The fire service personnel of this country are very brave and
enterprising. But their fleet does not yet have advanced and they have not modern
equipments. Helicopters, high-altitude emergency ladders and modern equipments need to
include in Fire Service fleet. The Sitakunda tragedy has revealed its reality. Bangladesh is a
country prone to natural disasters. Almost this country has to face various disasters. And the
Fire Service then became a lifeblood among the people.
A lot of government money is wasted on needless sectors like to learn cooking khichuri, to
learn to dig ponds, seeing railway lines etc. This time around, some money should be spent
on modernizing the Fire Service and increasing their efficiency by cutting down on wastage
in various sectors. It will bring benefits to the country. In Sitakunda tragedy, lots of mothers
lost their beloved sons; somebody's father, somebody's friend, somebody's brother,
somebody's husband and somebody's only breadwinner of the family died prematurely. How
many people today have suffered terrific untimely deaths due to the negligence of a BM
Depot owner! In the end, nothing happens to these top industrialists. But those who have lost
the loved ones, they understand the pain of leaving!

A committee has already been formed to investigate the Sitakunda fire. But there is remained
doubt about whether it will be implemented in the end. In these cases, it is seen that an
investigation committee is formed and report is submitted but the culprits are not brought to
justice. We want a proper investigation of this tragedy. Let those who are responsible for the
tragic death of so many people be severely punished. The expectation is that such a tragedy
like the Sitakunda fire in Chittagong will not happen again. Emran Emon is a researcher,
journalist and columnist.

https://dailyasianage.com/
 Sitakunda Blast: A New Dimension in Bangladesh’ s Fire History

Bangladesh has experienced another devastating fire incident that happened a week ago at
Sitakunda in Chattogram during the very first hour of the night on June 4. This fire incident
has opened up several issues and given a new dimension in areas of preparedness to dowse
such a fire blast. Till the date, we have lost 49 lives who are the workers of that depot, the fire
fighters and the spectators as well.

The first issue of this fire incident is a huge toll of death of firefighters (nine lives) and this is
for the first time in the history of fire accident in Bangladesh. This is because the firefighters
were completely ignorant about the nature of fire, they were going to fight with and they
were not prepared and trained accordingly to do the same. Rather, they thought that it was a
regular fire incident that they usually work with and came up with some common measures
(i.e., pouring of water) to handle it. The other issue is that again we see the irresponsible
behaviour from the atypical people around the fireplace, who were doing Facebook live
streaming of this incident without realising the potential danger of this fire, which engulfs
almost eight lives.

The new dimension of this fire is that it happened in an open area and got a devastating shape
through numerous blasts of shipping containers containing non-homogenous goods, from
textiles (i.e., readymade garments) to chemicals (i.e., hydrogen peroxide etc.). At this stage,
let us investigate why and how this fire got such a devastating shape? From the reports of
several print and electronic media, we have come to know that at this depot, chemical goods
like hydrogen peroxide, readymade garments and textile raw materials were stored. We know
that textile goods (i.e., garments, fabrics and raw cotton, etc.) are a good source of fuel as
they belong to an organic structure and definitely a hydrocarbon (both the natural and a
synthetic one).

On the other hand, hydrogen peroxide is an inorganic chemical usually used in the bleaching
action of textile goods and other industries as well. Hydrogen peroxide is a strong oxidizer
and it itself is a nonflammable substance in an ambient condition. It has a boiling point of
about 152 0C, a bit higher of water and at its boiling point or at the above of this temperature;
it behaves in a different way. In an elevated temperature, hydrogen peroxide starts to lose its
stability and decompose into oxygen and water. Here, the oxygen released in an exothermic
decomposition combusts in the presence of fire and subsequently, causes an explosion if the
exothermic release of oxygen continues. Thus, this released oxygen works as a catalyst or an
intensifier in this fire incident to fuel up the textile goods or other flammable objects
available at the fireplace. In addition, the drums of hydrogen peroxide are kept in a sealed
container and thus the containers blasted with a big sound and the metallic objects of the
containers were thrown away with a high force to cause the causalities of the spectators.

The source of fire could be anything (i.e., usually a self flammable object), but the shape, size
and intensity of a fire solely depend on available fuels to sustain this blaze and in the
surroundings where the fire incident takes place. And according to that, we have to come up
with appropriate preparations and measures (i.e., wet chemical extinguishers, CO2 fire
extinguisher, etc.) to fight with it.
Meanwhile, we have noticed the negligence of the concerned authorities, especially of the
BM Container Depot Limited who irresponsibly stored such chemicals without the concern of
custom and the related bodies. Even they did not follow proper guidelines and maintain
necessary precautions to store and handle them. We also can realise that the concerned bodies
did not conduct necessary inspection and all this negligence and our poor fire management
system are responsible to cause such catastrophic loss of human life and resources. This kind
of disaster will also pose health-related risks to local communities as well as released liquid
waste will be a great threat to agricultural land and water bodies.

We need to realise that firefighting in this day is much more than just responding to fires
rather to deal with a variety of complex incidents and rescues, which may include chemical
spills to respond to terrorism. Thus, once again, the relevant bodies of the government must
take necessary steps to make our firefighters more capable to deal with such kind of fire
incident and related inspection bodies of the government will do their job in a responsible
way so that we can escape such fatalities in near future.

The writer is Assistant Professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Jashore University of

Science and Technology, Jashore
 Globalization and social changes in Bangladesh
Globalization is a system that has contributed to the establishment of a single world society
economically, politically, ideologically, socially, and culturally. Many scholars, sociologists,
economists, and political scientists, analysed and described globalization in detail. In general,
globalization refers to the increasing integration of economies worldwide. This integration
has played a role in the movement of goods, services, and capital across the international
border, in addition to the movement of people and knowledge. According to experts, it is a
process that points to a beautiful development of information communication technology.

Many believe that globalization is the addition of capitalism to build a global economic
system. The impact of globalization in Bangladesh is positive and negative. Globalization is
also having a positive impact on the communication system of Bangladesh. With the advent
of high-tech communication, the world has come very close. We can instantly learn what is
happening in the farthest region or country. Different countries of the world have become like
a single village, and people can share their joys and sorrows like the neighbors next door.
This has been made possible by the unimaginable advancement of communication
technology. We can now easily exchange audio, video, and text from one part of the world to
another through internet. The impact of globalization on the economy of Bangladesh cannot
be denied. Like the world's developing countries, our country also benefits from a borderless
market. Our GDP has increased, and the garment industry is considered a means of earning
foreign currencies.

EPZs (Export Processing Zones) have been hugely successful in terms of investment,
employment and exports. The expansion of the free market economy has led to the
development of a relationship of dependence between this country and the rest of the world.
As a result, there is no obstacle for Bangladeshi products to go to other countries. The free
market economy has expanded through bilateral and multilateral relations. Globalization is
now primarily based on a robust technological foundation. The transfer of information via the
internet has created an instantaneous and interconnected world of information resulting in a
24-hour trading network. This technology has dramatically changed banking and financial
activities. Various transactions of e-cash, e-banking, etc., are being conducted. As a result,
the quality of service is increasing, and the waste of time, labour, and money is decreasing.
Sports have been playing an essential role in the development of international relations. Many
international sports events are organized every year, and these events are broadcast
worldwide by satellite and are watched live by people worldwide. The playground became a
gathering place for people from different countries and they came closer, sharing opinions,
views, and friendships. Bangladesh is also a beneficiary of this opportunity. Bangladesh has
identified education as the key to prosperity and progress.

As a result of globalization, donor countries are contributing to increasing our literacy rate
and overall educational progress. Various international organizations have responded with
their generous support in the field of education. Deserving students are taking advantage of
foreign study scholarships. Although globalization has primarily been linked to trade,
commerce, and international relations, it has now contributed to other areas, particularly the
exchange of culture. Satellite television channels and the internet are bringing a variety of
customs and practices to the country. Under the influence of globalization, global culture is
gradually integrating with local culture, and different cultures are constantly interacting. One
of the positive aspects of globalization is the rapid development of transportation systems.
The prevalence of high-speed vehicles based on modern technology in place of those
traditional vehicles is noticeable in Bangladesh. This has made communication with the
internal and external world more dynamic. Globalization has made a significant contribution
to the export of human resources. But there is some malice of globalization too. Some
adverse effects of globalization are also observed in Bangladesh's society. As a result of
globalization, the social system in Bangladesh is changing very fast. Family breakdown,
divorce, separation, old age problems, drug addiction, terrorism, and militancy are increasing
daily. Multinational companies have set up most of their factories and manufacturing plants
in other underdeveloped countries, including Bangladesh, to make more profit, but waste is
not being treated scientifically. Due to globalization, the influence of the so-called improved
lifestyle, clothing, eating habits, communication system, etc., in the western world has
created a kind of instability in public life in our country.

As a result of the free-market economy, the developed world freely markets products,
technologies, and services in developing countries, including Bangladesh. In this case, local
or domestic production, technology, and service sectors are getting sick and losing because
they cannot compete. One of the inevitable realities of the modern world is globalization.
Globalization continues to influence society, politics, economy, and culture. This effect is
sometimes positive and sometimes negative. However, globalization has brought a lot of
momentum in different areas of human life. Communication, travel, transportation, import-
export, and exchange of information from one country to another have become much more
manageable. The writer is a researcher and development worker.
 Padma Bridge–a milestone in economic freedom
Finally, our dream project the Padma Bridge will be inaugurated on 25th June 2022.
Undoubtedly, this is not merely a still structure. It embodies our unfathomable emotions and
aspirations. It also reflects the national pride of charting our own course of development.
Indeed, this is going to be one of our brightest milestones towards economic freedom for
which millions shed their blood in 1971 and subsequently.

That this bridge has touched the core of our national aspirations was clearly indicated from a
piece of news that a father took his terminally ill son to the site of the bridge as his last wish
hiring a special ambulance at a cost of Taka sixteen thousand.

Though dampened to some extent by the Sitakunda tragedy, similar emotions must still be
touching the hearts of about thirty million people of 21 districts in southern part of
Bangladesh who have been cut off the mainstream Bangladesh due to the lack of a bridge
over the mighty Padma.

Certainly, there have been some unavoidable delays in implementation of this mega project
due to first unsubstantiated allegations by a multilateral development agency and later by
sudden outbreak of COVID-19 and thus putting the construction on hold for many months. In
addition, the technical challenges of construction of the bridge over a river which is second
only to Amazon in terms of speed of its waterflow and complicated ecological reality
requiring deepest pilling (128 meter) was overwhelming. Special equipment like heavy
hammer had to be tailor-made from Germany to complete such pilling, that too fighting
against mood of the river.

Among many other challenges, the financing of the project became a source of unnecessary
controversy when the World Bank decided to withdraw its support of 1.2 billion USD on
flimsy ground of „corruption‟. Other development partners, including ADB and JICA, were
pained to follow the global leader financing institution despite their uneasiness with the
controversy which was evolving fast.

The government of Bangladesh under the strong leadership of Premier Sheikh Hasina kept its
cool and decided to start construction of the bridge with domestic resources, even though the
Finance Division was quite reluctant to take up this huge task. Around that time, I saw from a
very close quarter how the Premier unbundled the conspiracy and kept on moving forward
without much hesitation. The Bangladesh Bank stood by her and gave the comfort by
promising necessary foreign exchange support from the banking sector. The country by then
had already come out of the global financial crisis and was experiencing current account
surplus with surging foreign exchange reserve. Both exports and inward remittance growths
were exceptionally buoyant around that time. And we also knew that the foreign exchange
requirement by the project would not be in bulk, and the banking sector was strong enough to
respond to its demand.

I still remember that we had a meeting of the Project Director of the Padma Multipurpose
Bridge Project and representatives from Bangladesh Bank and Agrani Bank in the office of
the Governor of Bangladesh Bank immediately after the decision of the government to
implement the bridge with its own resources. We designed the modalities for this foreign
exchange support while the Ministry of Finance was by then prepared to put in place the local
resources under Annual Development Program. We reassured the Agrani Bank to provide all
the regulatory support including additional foreign exchange from the bulging reserve. We
are now happy to report that Agrani Bank has already put in 1.4 billion US dollars into the
project while Bangladesh Bank always stood by the bank. The financing mechanism has been
gradual and smooth, and the banking sector was ready to walk extra miles for this pride
project. I am sure that the remaining bills will be similarly cleared by the bank with support,
if needed, from the central bank. Indeed, this has been a rewarding experience for the banking
sector under the prudent guidance of the central bank.

All this has been possible due to the fighting spirit which was instilled in the psyche of the
nation by the Father of the Nation. He literally started from the ashes and took the country to
the highway of prosperity with his farsighted policy of self-reliance and home-grown
solutions of inclusive development. That fighting spirit has been aptly inherited by his
daughter and Bangladesh is now getting the benefits of the legacy of that courageous
leadership. I still remember how so many of our struggling remitters from the source
countries were asking our banks for ways to send money for the construction of the Padma
Bridge. Although they were not finally required to direct contributions for the construction of
the bridge, none can, however, ignore their indirect contributions by the consistent inflow of
the remittance and as well as their patriotic zeal for the country. No doubt, they are our
national heroes who have been working so hard in adverse conditions of the Middle East and
other regions. The formal inauguration of the Padma Bridge will surely be keenly watched by
these heroes wherever they are and be a part of the euphoria that has already been set in
among the people from all strata in Bangladesh.

Apart from this euphoria, the Padma Bridge deserves a deeper look in terms of the huge
impact it is likely to make on the regional and national economies. Of course, this bridge will
connect the 21 districts of the southern Bangladesh with the other parts of the country,
particularly the capital Dhaka. The people from these districts will cross the bridge in minutes
and participate in all the national activities like others without any physical barriers. No more,
the freight trucks will have to wait for days in the ferry ghats to cross the mighty Padma. The
international trade, particularly with the neighboring countries, will get a boost due to
seamless transport connectivity which will be facilitated by the bridge. We have already seen
how such connectivity helps raise the productivity and size of the economy after the
Bangabandhu Bridge was constructed over the Jamuna River.

The economic rate of return of the Bangabandhu Bridge as projected by the development
partners was proved wrong and the entire northern part of Bangladesh has been deriving
unprecedented socio-economic benefits from the connectivity facilitated by this bridge. This
poverty-stricken part of the country witnessed spurt in regional economic growth and Monga
(the case of seasonal extreme poverty) has literally been wiped out of the region. The country
is now eagerly awaiting the repeat play of this economic resurgence in the southern part of
the Bangladesh as well after the inauguration of the Padma Bridge.
Let us now focus more light on the socio-economic benefits of the Padma Bridge. Thanks to
a succinct report titled „Padma Bridge Gives Rise to Abundant Possibilities‟ by the
LightCastle Partners (April 23, 2021). Economic impacts of the project can be summarized as
follows:

- The economic benefits will flow not only in the southern part but also throughout the
country due to multiple effects. Estimated national GDP may lift by 2% (some say 1.26%).
The regional GDP may rise by 3.5%.
- The economic Rate of Return of the project will be 18-21 percent. The entire cost of the
project may be realized by 31 years or even earlier.

- The bridge will significantly improve the efficiency of the road transport development that
has already taken place in the southern region by bridging it to the mainstream Bangladesh,
particularly its capital Dhaka and its adjoining industrial townships like Gazipur,
Narayanganj and Narsingdi. This part of the country was deprived of efficient connectivity
due to huge ferry queue arising out of the disrupted navigability of the Padma and extreme
weather condition. The huge man-hour and economic loss due to above constraints will
disappear with the opening of the bridge. This will certainly add value to our GDP.

- With the operationalization of the railway, the connectivity will further improve adding at
least one percentage more to the country‟s GDP.

- The connectivity of roads, railways and energy transportation will further ease international
trade with India, Nepal and Bhutan by linking Bangladesh to Trans-Asian Highway and
Trans-Asian Railway. The BBIN sub-regional economic cooperation will certainly get a
boost.

- The possibility of improved network and connectivity has already boosted the initiation of
economic zones, high-tech parks, and private industrial enterprises in the region.

- With the launch of the bridge, there will be better coordination between all the seaports of
the country reducing the overburdening pressure on the Chittagong port and creating higher
efficiency in port management.

- There is a real possibility in the growth of eco parks, exclusive economic zones, marine
drives in the coastal belt, sea aquariums, international stadiums and convention halls, hotels,
resorts, shopping-malls in southern Bangladesh particularly in and around Payra and Mongla
ports following the opening of the bridge.

- There will be spurt in both ship-breaking and ship-building industries in Khulna and
Barishal where the land prices have already started soaring up.

- With better transport connectivity, agriculture, SMEs and tourism industry will be boosted
in the region. The tourists from Dhaka and abroad will flock to Kuakata, Bagerhat, the
Sundarbans and Tungipara as they can reach these places in three to four hours. The time to
reach Benapole will also be reduced by about half accelerating greater movements of tourists
across the borders.

- The southern Bangladesh with five percent higher level of poverty will experience 1.01
percent reduction in regional poverty leading to 0.84% fall in national poverty.

- There will be faster diversification of businesses in the southwestern region maximizing

farm and non-farm growth possibilities along with increased saline resistant maize and wheat,
dairy and fish processing, shrimp production and related businesses, jute, and textiles. The
improved supply chains along with better storage facilities will further boost the pace of
industrialization benefitting from the lower cost of labour and transportation.
- With the facilities of electricity, gas, and internet pipelines in place over the bridge, the
southwestern districts will see the spurt of growth of small and medium enterprises including
the freelancers who will now get stable internet and other digital services.

- All this will help create employment opportunities for about 1.2% of total labor force
providing at least 200,000 people with new employment. This will ease pressure on Dhaka
and other large cities creating opportunities for growth of smaller and smarter cities (say like
Bhanga) in addition to uplift of older cities.

- More universities and hospitals will be built in this part of the country creating more
opportunities for decentralized growth in skilled human resources. The government will be
well advised to provide additional incentives and regulatory supports (say through prioritized
startup programs of Bangladesh Bank and ICT Division) to the aspiring small and digital
entrepreneurs of this region who will be ready to contribute better towards Fourth Industrial
Revolution.

I can go on talking about the plethora of opportunities that this bridge is likely to unleash for
Bangladesh. To quote (from a personal conversation with me) late National Professor Jamilur
Reza Chowdhury who was the chief of the Technical Committee of the Padma Bridge
project, this state-of-the-art infrastructure will pave the way for further growth in our national
capability for undertaking even larger mega projects with our own resources, both human and
finance. He was also confident that smart cities like Shanghai may come up around this
bridge in not so distant a time. I only hope his dream come true. If the land price is an
indication, there is a real possibility of such a pace of urbanization around the Padma Bridge.
Bangladesh is now in the similar growth trajectory of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand were
in the 1980s and 1990s.

With the boom in domestic consumption (contributing about two-thirds of its buoyant
growth) which has been at the root of Bangladesh‟s defiance of Global Financial Crisis of
2008-09 and the Covid-19 pandemic, relatively younger population, higher intake in tertiary
education, robust growth in RMGs and SMEs (rising share of manufacturing in GDP leading
to about 38% now), improved female workforce participation, Bangladesh is well poised to
even overcome the current economic challenges created by fallouts of the Ukraine war. And
the commission of the Padma Bridge with all the potentials of making positive effects on the
regional and national economy by enhancing the above gains will go a long way in spurring
the amazing transformation of Bangladesh‟s micro and macro economies as aspired by our
Father of the Nation. Indeed, leadership matters. Indeed, this has been aptly demonstrated by
the Bangladesh Premier in guiding the nation through her drive for transformational mega
infrastructures, including the Padma Bridge, without jeopardizing the existing
macroeconomic stability that her government has built up so skillfully.

Dr. Atiur Rahman

The writer is a noted economist and former Governor of Bangladesh Bank.
Email: dratiur@gmail.com
 Padma bridge: A glorious addition to our history
Bangladesh will enter a new era on 25 June, 2022. Our long awaited mega project Padma
Bridge willbe inaugurated on that day. This is the largest infrastructural project of
Bangladesh so far. The economic implication of Padma Bridge is enormous as it will directly
rejuvenate the business, economy and lifestyle of a large part of our country. The challenge to
build this bridge is worth writing a book by itself. But the valorous leadership of Prime
minister Sheikh Hasina turned Padma Bridge into a reality. It is truly a glorious addition to
the legacy and history of this country. Hence, we all need to protect Padma Bridge as well as
surrounding ecosystem to attain maximum benefits.

The opening of Padma Bridge is going to be a major transition for the nation as the mega
structure is going to open up new possibilities for the national economy. The 6.15km mega
infrastructure will tie the two sides of the mighty Padma River, which has kept the country's
over one-fourth population apart from the capital Dhaka till now. Padma Bridge will have a
deep impact on the lives and livelihoods of the people of 21 south and southwestern districts.
Economists predict that the bridge will help increase the country's GDP by 1.23 percent while
that of south and southwestern districts by over 2 percent by creating employment
opportunities for some 10 million people. Economic zones will be created and more
employment will be generated while eco-parks, industrial parks, tourism and other service
sectors will grow after the bridge is open.

At least 30 million people, one-fifth of the country's total population, will directly benefit
from the bridge, according to a study carried out by the World Bank. In a study, the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) said that the construction of the Padma Bridge would significantly
help improve various sectors of the economy nationally and regionally. Padma Bridge will
build an indispensable connection within the framework of Bangladesh. The bridge will erect
part of the A-1 line of the Asian Highway also. The bridge can lead to not only an important
highway but also arrange a railway line, which is essential for connecting India's freight
transport. The Padma Rail Link project is expected to transform Bangladesh into a sub-route
of the Trans-Asian Railway Network and contribute about 1 percent to the country's GDP
growth. At the same time, Bangladesh can benefit from the implementation of the
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) as the
bridge will directly connect Mongla and Payra ports.By road, the distance between Dhaka
and most of the south-western districts will be reduced to at least 100 km. As a result, people
from all sectors, including business and agriculture, will benefit, impacting the country's
GDP.

The accessibility study conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
predicts that after the completion of the Padma Bridge, the daily traffic volume will reach
21,300 vehicles and 41,600 vehicles per day by 2025. It said the bridge will save
approximately 681,600 liters of fuel per day. On the other hand, ADB has estimated that the
Padma Bridge will carry an average of 24,000 vehicles per day in 2024 and 67,000 by 2050.
According to ADB, the long-term that is 31 years road user benefit of the Padma Bridge in
the traffic model will stand at $18.512 billion, while Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) has
estimated the total project benefit at nearly $25 billion in the period. Meanwhile, economic
activity in the southwest has already amplified around the bridge, with mass-level
industrialization underway. Land near highways is now selling at three times higher than the
earlier prices. There is also an expectation for the rapid growth of mega factories, hospitals,
universities, housing industries, and small businesses around the Padma Bridge. Besides, the
ship-breaking industry, RMG, assembling plantand storage facilities will be set up in the
southern part. BSCIC sources said 500 to 1000 factories of the different sectors will be set up
in six districts of Barisal division in the next 10 years.

Infrastructure generates economic benefit to the extent they create services for people. The
return from investments depends on enabling policy framework and supporting measures.
One of the preconditions is the development of all regions including the rural areas and
creating opportunities for people everywhere. Decentralization of services and opportunities
is critical for gaining benefits from such infrastructure. For example, setting up of industries
in the newly connected districts will help stop migration from the rural areas to the big cities
for work. Better access to finance for small and medium businesses such as agro-processing,
handicrafts and food industries will also help create jobs. Besides, improvement of facilities
such as uninterrupted electricity, internet, education and healthcare in the villages will
restrain people from crowding the cities. It is important that, the Padma Bridge is used
properly for maximum benefits. To make Padma Bridge more accessible, toll rate should be
moderate to low.

The government should focus on making people and businesses use this bridge as the best
transportation option. High toll will make people less interested in using this bridge,
especially for trading businesses. Hence, the government should fix a toll rate which will be
commercially viable. Padma Bridge became a reality after overcoming many challenges
imposed by the World Bank, JICA, global and national politics. So, many, inside and outside
the country is not happy with the completion of Padma Bridge and they can try to sabotage
this infrastructure to make the government look bad as many already talked of engineering
fault and high costs related to the bridge. Moreover, huge development and progress of
Bangladesh during the last decade is also not welcome by everyone, mostly due to political
reasons. Hence, the government must make strong arrangement for ensuing the security and
management of Padma Bridge for at least next 10-20 years. One risk factor associated with
the Padma Bridge is the possible destruction of surrounding ecosystem. Ecosystem of areas
surrounding Meghnariver was severely damaged by Meghna and Daudkandi Bridge. Similar
happened with Shitolokhya, Buriganga, Turag, Balu, Dholeshwari and other rivers as
industries and infrastructures were built at the adjacent areas of these rivers.

These severely caused water and soil pollution and we do not find much fish in those rivers
now. Additionally, crops got contaminated due to polluted water. This was a serious havoc
due to unplanned urbanization and industrialization of riverside areas. After inauguration of
the bridge, many industries, buildings, resorts etc. may be built in the surrounding area. The
wastes of those infrastructures will directly go to the Padma river and will later move to other
adjacent rivers including Meghna. Hence, it is possible that the natural habitats of many
species including fishes will be destroyed, which will deplete our food supply also.
Moreover, the polluted water will enter soil to contaminate corns and plants, which will
increase risks of different diseases. This will be devastating for the nature, ecosystem and
human health. Moreover, we are already facing several challenges of nature and that will
further escalate if Padma or Meghnaexperience the same fate as Buriganga. The government
must restrict building of any infrastructures, buildings, resorts and other commercial
infrastructure within at least 20km radius of Padma Bridge at both sides. If any such
infrastructures are built, they that must contain a fully running UTP plant of its own for waste
management. Additionally, the government must remain careful in managing wastes
generated on Padma Bridge itself. We must give full priority to protect the ecosystem of areas
surrounding Padma Bridge. Otherwise, we will face such loss which will be much more than
several Padma Bridge in terms of costs.

If environmental damages are not considered, our largest bridge, Padma Bridge will destroy
our largest river. Padma Bridge is an icon of Bangladeshi nationalism. We have faced
conspiracy, scandals and many other challenges to complete this mega project. It was PM
Sheikh Hasina's courageous decision to build this bridge with own money, which made this
project possible. Millions of people have billions of dreams attached with Padma Bridge.
Only if we are careful enough in using this bridge and surrounding areas, then those dreams
will come true. We hope, Padma Bridge will take us to new heights globally. The writer is
Chief Editor at Mohammadi News Agency (MNA), Editor at Kishore Bangla and Vice-
Chairman, Democracy Research Centre (DRC)
 Padma bridge and the World Bank
In 2012, when the World Bank came out with the allegation of corruption relating to Padma
Bridge, all hell broke loose in Bangladesh. It was a serious allegation of 'conspiracy' plotted
to stage a high-level corruption in the Padma Bridge project for which the World Bank had
committed US$1.2 billion. The Bank claimed to have credible evidence corroborated by a
variety of sources which pointed to a high-level corruption conspiracy among Bangladeshi
government officials and SNC Lavalin and threatened cancellation of the IDA credit unless
all public officials suspected of involvement in the corruption scheme are sent on leave and
special enquiry team formed within the ACC to handle the investigation.

The government agreed to place and did place all public officials suspected of involvement in
the corruption scheme on leave from government employment until an investigation was
completed, appointed a special inquiry and prosecution team within the ACC to handle the
investigation and granted access to all investigative information to an external panel of
internationally recognised experts who advised the Bank and co-financiers on the credibility
of the government's investigations.

But all these measures were in vain. The World Bank cancelled the US$ 1.2 billion IDA
credit to Padma Bridge as the Bank remained concerned about corruption in Bangladesh in
general and in the Padma bridge project in particular. Irrespective of the nature and substance
of the World Bank's allegation, cancellation of US$1.2 billion to deprive the country of an
important life-line was not the right thing to do. Unwittingly, the World Bank has also
handed over a powerful weapon to the opposition party who would fully exploit it during the
next election. The condition for reinstatement of the loan was also ill-conceived.

Five years later, the Canadian Court held that there was not a shred of evidence of Padma
Bridge Bribery Conspiracy and acquitted three former top executives of SNC Lavalin. An
Ontario Superior Court Justice dismissed the case at the request of the Prosecution which
proved beyond any doubt that the World Bank had based its judgment on hearsay evidence
and gossips. Earlier ACC's finding was also that the allegation of corruption conspiracy was
false.

This was an unprecedented episode in the 70 years history of the World Bank. Both the
charges of corruption as well as the cancellation of credit line of US$ 1.2 billion hurt
Bangladesh in many ways and should not be allowed to pass unchallenged. From the extracts
of the judgment reported in the press, it appears that on March 2011, the World Bank
contacted Royal Canadian Mounted Police saying that it received allegation of possible
corruption involving SNC Lavalin and the Padma Bridge Project. Mr Paul Haynes, an
investigator in the World Bank's Vice Presidency for integrity, raised the allegation on the
basis of emails from tipsters whom he did not meet, nor knew the identity of all of them.
Therefore, for all practical purposes, the information came from an anonymous source and
should not have been the basis of any complaint by the World Bank. The Court observed that
the allegation of one of the tipsters was very general in nature and was irrelevant to the
allegation and that the World Bank knew that one of the tipsters had been involved in corrupt
practices in the same bidding process with another bidder.
All in all, it became clear that the World Bank acted irresponsibly in raising this issue of
corruption and to make it a ground for cancellation of US$ 1.2 billion IDA Credit of
Bangladesh. The relationship between the Bank and Bangladesh is not that of a borrower and
a lender that the Bank can just walk away from the project and terminate the relationship.
Bangladesh and the World Bank have to work jointly to develop alternative project pipeline
to deploy the cancelled IDA Fund of which Bangladesh is a major recipient. The initiative for
an honorable resolution of the dispute should come from the World Bank who should leave
no stone unturned to achieve this goal.

This was not the only time that the World Bank had cried wolf. Way back in 1974, a young,
enthusiastic bank economist, responsible for writing the Annual Economic Report of
Bangladesh, mentioned of stories of corruption during the course of writing of the Report.
Through oversight of the senior bank as well as Government of Bangladesh (GOB) officials,
these references to corruption found place in the Grey Cover of the Report which was duly
circulated. On instruction from the government, I as an Alternate Executive Director (ED),
challenged the economist and the director to prove on the authenticity of the incidents of
corruption to enable GOB to prosecute those involved in the corruption. There was none.
Nevertheless, the director did not agree to withdraw and reprint the report, but backed out
when he was told about my decision to take the matter up in the next Board Meeting. The
Report was withdrawn and reprinted after exclusion of all references to corruption. Through
inadvertence, however, in one place the reference to corruption still remained. I insisted for a
second reprinting of the Report before circulation which was duly complied with.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim cannot escape moral responsibility for this unhappy
episode and should take the initiative to restore allocation of US$D 1.2 billion of IDA credit
to the project, allow instant reimbursement of the cost so far incurred by GOB and last but
not the least, draw proceedings against those staff members who had invented and initiated
the false conspiracy theory.

Matiul Islam was the first Finance Secretary, Government of

Bangladesh. chairman.iidfc@gmail.com
 Budget 2022-23: Financing Deficit More Challenging
Finance Minister, A. H. M Mustafa Kamal has unveiled the national budget for the fiscal year
2022-23. In the budget preparation, the trend of the current development pace has been well
maintained. The size of the current budget is Tk 6 lac 78 thousand 64 crore, which is Tk 74
thousand 383 core higher than the previous budget. In fact, the current budgetary allocation is
about 14.25% higher than the previous year which implies an expansionary fiscal policy with
a focus on maintaining economic growth. The time is not in favour of the govt to present a
national budget keeping pace with economic growth because of the volatile situation
prevailing in the international arena. The world economy has not fully recovered from the
setback caused by the coronavirus pandemic that kept the whole world economy at almost a
standstill for the last two years. As soon as the world economy started coming out of the
pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war erupted leaving the world with severe volatility as well as
uncertainty in the political and economic arena. The price spiral has engulfed the whole
world inviting recession in the developed economies that, if happened, may impact
developing countries as well, so our country is not immune. Under this volatile and uncertain
situation, people expected that the govt may prepare a budget in contract from downsizing the
budgetary allocation this year. However, govt did not move in that direction, rather has taken
the challenge and presented a national budget with a higher outlay with the objective of
maintaining economic growth. Amidst such uncertainty and volatility, presenting a national
budget with higher allocation once again proved that the present govt led by the daughter of
Bangabandhu, Sheikh Hasina is determined to keep country‟s economic development up at
any cost.

Economic development & deficit budget: Budget is a kind of forecast, so full utilisation as
always criticised over is an unlikely situation. However, greater allocation ensures higher
utilisation which positively contributes to the country‟s GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Like
previous years, the budget for the fiscal year 2022-23 has been presented as a deficit budget.
Total outlay is estimated Tk 6 lac 78 thousand 64 crore against which total inflow has been
estimated Tk 4 lac 33 thousand crore, so the projected deficit is taka 2 lac 45 thousand 64
crore. The budget deficit is 5.5% of GDP which seems to be within an acceptable standard. It
is undeniable fact that a deficit budget is inevitably required for keeping country‟s economic
development up and most countries of the developed as well as developing world follow the
same procedure. Some countries, however, segregate their development programmes from
the yearly budget and undertake separate development plan with special funding arrangement
that is not then reflected in the yearly budgetary allocation. In order to maintain the trend of
current economic development, our country will have to accept the deficit budget that the
present govt has rightly done. Adopting a deficit budget is not a problem at all, but financing
budget deficit is a kind of a challenge particularly in the current uncertain situation. From
what source financing will be arranged to meet the budgetary deficit is the key factor. In the
developed world, there are enormous internal sources for mobilising fund to finance budget
deficit which is completely absent in our country. So our govt has to rely on internal as well
as external sources to mobilise funds for meeting the deficit.

Foreign debt must be minimum: The proposed budget has a total deficit of Tk 2 lac 45
thousand 64 crore out of which, taka 1 lac 6 thousand 334 crore will be mobilised from
domestic bank borrowing while taka 1 lac 12 thousand 458 crore will be arranged from
foreign debt. Financing such a huge amount of deficit seems to be the most challenging part
of this budget. The present world is passing through a very uncertain situation and amidst
such critical conditions, keeping foreign debt as minimum as possible would have been the
ideal strategy. In this context, obtaining foreign debt of such a huge amount will of course
create some sort of pressure. It should be wise to limit foreign debt to the amount of deficit
exclusively required for disbursing in foreign currency and the remaining amount should be
mobilised from domestic sources. Even, obtaining foreign debt through the issuance of
sovereign bonds instead of direct borrowing from international institutions should be more
effective and convenient, particularly in the present volatile world economic
condition.

Impact of govt‟s massive bank borrowing: Mobilising taka 1 lac 6 thousand 334 crore from
bank borrowing will expose another type of challenge that should be avoided. Substantial
govt borrowing from commercial banks will adversely affect private sector investment, which
will eventually impact this sector‟s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) contribution. Achieving
the budgetary goal of maximising private sector contribution to the GDP will be adversely
impacted following the extensive bank borrowing by the govt. We have to keep in mind that
banks disburse loans, either in private sector or public sector, from deposit mobilisation. So,
every bank has the highest ceiling of loanable funds which is tied to total deposit
mobilisation. Therefore, banks cannot disburse the loan breaching that maximum cap. Govt
borrowing from banks will use up banks‟ loanable funds leaving banks with no room to fund
the private sector. Some may argue that govt usually borrows from nationalised banks
whereas private enterprises borrow from private banks, so govt borrowing for meeting deficit
finance will not impact private sector investment. But it is not true. Regardless of borrowing
from the public or private sector, the total loanable fund readily available in the country‟s
banking sector is always reduced by the amount to be borrowed by govt. Consequently, the
private sector will have less opportunity to borrow from banks, which will badly affect the
growth of the private sector. If private sector investment is affected due to a paucity of bank
loans that will arise out of substantial govt borrowing, new employment opportunities may
not be created, even unemployment may rise in some cases and the overall contribution of the
private sector to our GDP may also be affected.

Issuance of bond instead of bank borrowing: Instead of direct borrowing from local banks,
the govt may consider issuing bonds to mobilise funds for financing budget deficit. In order
to meet short-term funding requirements, the govt may issue bonds with one year tenor while
for long-term funding requirements, it may issue long-term bonds even with 30, 40 and 50
years of maturity. The bond is always considered sovereign bond which bears minimum or a
zero default risk, so there is always a high demand for govt bonds in the market. Issuance of
bonds enjoys multiple advantages compared to bank borrowing. Firstly, sovereign bond has
high demand among the investors, particularly institutional investors, so the interest rate on
bonds is relatively less than the interest rate on bank loans. Consequently, the govt has to
incur less expense on interest payments. Secondly, the govt can issue bonds for any amount
as this instrument enjoys sovereign risk, but the private sector cannot avail of that type of
opportunity due to the lack of an effective bond market. So, govt‟s mobilizing funds through
the issuance of sovereign bonds instead of direct borrowing from banks will keep the funding
avenue of the private sector open. Thirdly, the govt has to bear the blame or criticism for
extensive borrowing from banks, which can easily be avoided by mobilising funds through
the issuance of bonds. The mobilisation of funds through the issuance of bonds instead of
bank borrowing will not reduce loanable funds, so the private sector‟s investment will not be
impacted, which will eventually maximize this sector‟s contribution to GDP.
Bank can issue bond for lending to the govt: In the event, the govt may not go for issuance of
bonds in the market due to time constraints and have to rely on borrowing from banks. An
alternative arrangement can also be made. For lending to the govt sector, banks will not be
allowed to utilise depositors‟ money; instead, they will be encouraged to sell bonds in the
market to mobilise funds for lending to the govt sector. Loan granted to the govt will charge
minimum or zero default risk, so govt borrowing from banks will be considered a secured
loan that can easily be used as collateral security against bank‟s issuance of bonds. In fact,
banks will bundle up all loans granted to the govt to form collateral security, which will back
the bond that bank will issue to mobilise funds for lending to the govt. The process is defined
as securitisation, which is not practiced in our country although very common in the
developed world and some developing countries as well. However, now the time has come to
introduce such a sophisticated financing mechanism. The world scenario has changed in both
the political and economic arena and our country‟s economy has achieved tremendous
development with rising per capita income and massive infrastructural development. In order
to support this development, the size of our national budget has been enormous which
requires modern financial techniques that, if successfully adopted, will remove financing
challenges and will thus achieve the budgetary target.

The writer is a banker based in Toronto,

Canada and can be reached at: nironjankumar_roy@yahoo.com