Here are a few sugesstions:

1. Connect commitment with accountability and mainstream accountability in our planning, programming, implementation, monitoring and evaluation principles, processes, systems and practices. We should discard the current global practice of using goal(s) as a starting point for, say, the formulation of a community development plan. We should use commitment based accountability instead. It should form the core basis for defining the goal(s) of a plan per se. The goal(s) would then create a basis for the determination of other components of the plan. The proposed change could, among other things, give us a solid latitude for connecting more directly pertinent commitment(s) to accountability and then to eventual results and outcomes in a policy-outcome continuum.

A windfall from the above could assist the people of Bangladesh in making inter alia an assessment of, say, how much successful or unsuccessful the political parties (within and outside of the government) are at present (or were in the past) in the fulfilment of their pre-election commitment(s)? It could help the people to decide whom to vote at least in the next election. Besides, it could assist the political parties, NGOs and others in their effort towards self-evaluation and course correction.

The use of commitment-accountability compact (as an initial condition for actions and initiatives at local, national and global levels) could facilitate optimal good governance, as well as developmental outcomes (among others) in an increasingly interdependent world. One of the reasons being: it could encourage cutting-edge innovations on the part of commitment makers for making their commitments more realistic, competitive and result-oriented. It could force our political parties to take their commitments (to the people) more seriously than ever. World countries including organisations like WB and UN may opt for the commitment-accountability based planning, programming and implementation in pertinent areas. The bottomline is: the commitment-accountability compact would perhaps work optimally in a country (for example) wherein people-state synergy is productive.

2. Make community, as well as national data and statistics more useful and reliable for strengthening, among other things, the people-state synergy. In an increasingly quantum world, Bangladesh should ensure a maximum harnessing of ICT opportunities inter alia for managing its information, data, statistics, etc. (hereinafter: information, unless mentioned otherwise) in a more productive manner. There is a correlation between information management and good governance.

For a result generative and people centred information system, several factors need to be examined. Such as: the just-in-time availability of useful and reliable information; the scope, level and volume of information related transactions; the modes of the use of information; the trust of information users; and the potentials of available information for creating desired outcomes. The government, mass media (both print and electronic), political parties and others including the citizens have accountability, in varying degrees, for the promotion of a productive information regime in Bangladesh. WB, UNDP and other donors should assist Bangladesh in the above area partly because it would also serve their purposes. A comprehensive and reliable information system in place could help shorten the present gap in the input-outcome ratios of donor assistance to the country. It could also be instrumental in enhancing the quality and the accuracy of the UNDP sponsored HDI.

On its part, Bangladesh has a number of things to do in pertinent areas. Such as: a BMR of the government's statistics outfits; the establishment of a nation-wide network for, say, the consolidation of useful data and statistics generated by various organisations; the setting up of community data banks with the support and participation of civil society (I do not know whether they currently exist? If so, are they functioning optimally?); the use of reliable information screening and updating systems (at local and national levels) for maintaining the quality and usefulness of data and statistics; the improvement of numerical comprehension and communication skills of grassroots Bangladeshis and others in order to increase the size of users; an overall improvement in the dissemination and the use of the right information at the right time and costs by Bangladeshis; and the establishment of a special court to deal with fraud, forgery, corruption and other acts of misconduct that are connected with, or incidental to, a proper management, as well as preservation of national data and statistics. In this respect, the need for law reforms in pertinent areas should be explored and measure(s), as deemed fit by concerned authorities, taken.

3. Hold the government, political parties and others fully accountable for their action or feedback (or both) with regard to the numerous change proposals (etc.) that are being generated through in-country and ex-country discourses, debates and other means and presented to concerned quarters for decision and implementation. One of the reasons being: the present outcomes (of the above efforts and initiatives) are apparently nowhere near the energy and the resources spent (in pertinent areas) by the sponsors, the resource persons, the participants and others, and their commitment to common good. Hence, it has now become expedient for Bangladeshis to initiate discussions and debates that would focus, among other things, on: How can they make the government, political parties and others more responsive to the proposals (etc.)? How to develop consensus with regard to the materialisation of the proposal(s)? How to support the concerned quarters for the implementation of the proposal(s) agreed by and between all concerned?

To deal with the people's proposals in a more efficient and systematic manner, the political parties (in the parliament) should establish a parliamentary committee on People's Participation in Governance. The purposes of the committee would, among other things, be to: hear the proposals; accept them for scrutiny; give the public feedbacks on the proposals within the agreed deadline; share with the public the reason(s) leading to the acceptance or non-acceptance of a proposal; inform the public periodically about the work-in-progress of the proposal(s) under implementation; and seek public support and help for the implementation of proposal(s), as needed. The political parties that are not currently represented in the parliament may inter alia join the public and support their efforts in pertinent areas. The bottomline is: inaction or a limited action or a delayed action or an unproductive action by concerned quarters with regard to a potentially hi-impact public proposal could de-accelerate the participation of Bangladeshis in the country's governance. Bangladesh cannot simply afford that at this point in time.

4. Accord the development of plastics industries in Bangladesh a competing national priority. The use of plastics say, in engineering applications has an enormous potential in the 21st century. One present day application of fabric-impregnated laminated plastics is the making of automotive timing gears. The nylon bearings are plastics parts produced by injection moulding. Plastics tooling is another area, the composition of epoxy and resin has reduced the manufacturing expense of tools in many ways. Because the composition can be used to make a wide variety of dies, moulds and fixtures. Relatively light weight and high tensile strength of the plastics have, among other things, made the plastics parts operationally and economically feasible, for example and as applicable, in aero space industries. They have been contributing to higher fuel efficiency, among others.

In view of the above, the present, as well as the future market potential of plastics and other considerations, Bangladesh should formulate a result-oriented and future looking national strategy for the development and the diversification of plastics industries in the country, focusing, among other things, on an extensive private sector participation in the area, and the demand dynamics.