NO FRILLS
Dhaka-Chattogram Highway: Why no feasibility study?
When policy planners undertake a major connectivity project like the Dhaka-Chattogram highway expansion, which serves as a lifeline for our exports, one would expect that they would do what reasonably well-informed policymakers in other countries do, i.e. conduct
Aramco attacks: Fuelling the fire
Fingers are being pointed at Iran for the drone attack on two major Saudi Arabian oil facilities set ablaze on September 14. While the sabre rattling picks up the tempo, and despite reassurances by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) that strategic oil reserves will be deployed to stabilise the market, price of oil has shot up in the global markets.
Making the most of BRI
A daylong dialogue organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) on September 8 brought together participants from Bangladesh and some South Asian countries, as well as from China. Among them were high-level policymakers, political leaders, academics and
Donors’ interest in Rohingya crisis waning?
By all indications, yes, it is waning. Not from ours, but from the perspective of the international donor community that has been providing humanitarian support to the million or so Rohingyas stranded on Bangladeshi soil for two years now. The data speaks for itself.
Getting a rotten deal on rawhide
The recent debacle over the purchase of rawhides after Eid-ul-Azha raises some important concerns. The government had fixed the prices of rawhides of cows and buffaloes at Tk 45-50 per square foot in the capital city of Dhaka and Tk 35-40 elsewhere. The price of the rawhide of castrated goats was fixed at Tk 18-20 per square foot, while it was Tk 13-15 for that of non-castrated goats. This year, some 1 crore animals were sacrificed across the country. Forty-five percent of these animals were cows, bulls and buffaloes, according to rawhide traders.
Socio-economic impacts of the Rohingya influx
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in association with the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI) and the local administration of Cox’s Bazar, unveiled the findings of a joint impact assessment study on July 25, 2019. The report titled “Impacts of the Rohingya Refugee Influx on Host Communities” looks at the impact of the massive influx of Rohingyas on the host communities and how it has affected the long-term development needs of Bangladeshis living in the affected areas.
Foreign assistance boosts infrastructure development
During the five-day state visit by PM Sheikh Hasina to China on July 2-6, Bangladesh and China inked some important deals—five agreements including three memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and other agreements that included investment in the power
Bringing more people under the tax net
The finance minister recently stated that it is the government’s intention to bring 10 million people under the tax net.
A quarter of Dhaka’s wetlands gone
At the end of April, at a joint conference that included Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers’ Association (BELA), Bangladesh Institute of Planners (BIP), Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) and other groups came together to share the findings of a study spanning the last nine years on how there has been a systematic degradation of Dhaka’s overall environment to benefit business.
Illegal dam construction: The problem is not with laws but with their implementation
The lead item in the front page of The Daily Star on April 28 tells the story of a steel factory that has constructed a makeshift dam on a stream bordering the Jangal-Bashbaria reserve forest in Sitakunda.
Running out of landfills
As we urbanise at record speed, urban waste is being generated in massive quantities. The problem of course is that the two landfills serving the capital have nearly reached their limit.
A saga of non-compliance
Less than two days after the devastating fire that gutted FR Tower in Banani, city residents woke up to find the DNCC kitchen market had been burnt to the ground.
Time to improve our logistics potential
A new global report titled “Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index” unveiled a week ago ranks Bangladesh at 39th position out of 50
Chawkbazar Fire: Confusing comments may compromise findings
According to a report published in this paper on February 24, an industries ministry probe committee has claimed that it found no evidence of a chemical factory or warehouse in the vicinity of the Chawkbazar fire.
How to make development inclusive
The Centre for Policy Dialogue's (CPD) recent seminar on February 10 brought together policymakers, both present and past, development practitioners and educationists and the focus of the talk was how to achieve inclusive growth.
Economic diversification key to creating new jobs
As per a report published in The Daily Star on February 4, job creation target under the government's draft report, the Seventh Five
Protein feed ban must stay
The poultry industry is keen to have the government lift the recent ban on import and sale of meat and bone meal (MBM), a protein concentrate that is used as feed for chickens.
The poverty we choose to ignore
All the focus of late has been on Bangladesh's upcoming graduation from the group of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to the
