Bangladesh: The Rising Economic Power

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in its October 2020 report, titled, World Economic Outlook: A Long and Difficult Ascent, notes that Bangladesh has overtaken India when it comes to per capita GDP scoring US$ 1888. Notably, in 2015, just five years ago, India’s per capita GDP was around 40 percent higher than Bangladesh. Kaushik Basu, a former World Bank chief economist tweets that ‘Any emerging economy doing well is good news’. The focused and visionary plans, actions, and the effort of the Sheikh Hasina government and the persons of the country made possible such success for Bangladesh. Though this write-up began comparing Bangladesh’s financial success with India, certainly Bangladesh identifies India as a great friend instead of a competitor, believes in constructive engagement with India and other major powers instead of embracing conflict or competition, and acknowledges the role of the major development partners in the entire socio-economic development of the united states.

The impressive economical success of Bangladesh has turned into a matter of discussion in the Indian media and beyond. It is also seen that even though many countries on earth including the developed kinds are experiencing negative growth due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, Bangladesh is experiencing positive growth that also becomes a matter of celebration for Bangladesh. In this context, it becomes essential to investigate the rise/ emergence of Bangladesh as a financial power. In addition, only the negative news on Bangladesh becomes emphasized in the global media while overlooking the positive developments.

To understand the emergence of Bangladesh as a monetary power, one needs to go through the past. The decades-long oppression, suppression, injustice, and extreme discrimination against East Pakistan by West Pakistan made the persons of the East Pakistan poor and illiterate. For example, in an average year between 1960 and 1970, per capita, gross annual income was Bangladeshi Taka 450 (US$ 5.30, predicated on 2020 value), almost half of the population had a deficiency in calorie intake, and the literacy rate was 17 percent only. Between 1949-50 and 1969-70, the per capita income of Bangladesh could increase at a twelve-monthly rate of hardly 0.7 percent. In fact, through the fifties, the per capita income of Bangladesh declined at a total annual rate of 0.3 %. Per capita consumption of milk, fats, oil, fish, and other protein items were extremely low in Bangladesh. In March 1972, P. C. Verma wrote in the Economic and Political Weekly that ‘During the last 24 years, while Bangladesh was a part of Pakistan, its economy stagnated. The monetary policy pursued by the central government of Pakistan kept it economically backward’ (p.580). The development expenditure in Bangladesh was extremely low. Additionally, it is argued that the policies taken by the central government of Pakistan in the context of foreign aid, trade, interregional trade had extremely undesirable effects on Bangladesh.

Thus, the decades-long extreme discrimination against East Pakistan by West Pakistan economically, politically, and structurally resulted in the independence movement in East Pakistan beneath the leadership of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Finally, after nine months of the War of Independence, Bangladesh emerged being an independent nation-state in 1971. The 1971 War exacerbated the problem. The US estimated the reconstruction cost in/of Bangladesh at US$938 million. In that scenario, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of the nation took the leadership to rebuild the united states and to ensure it is a ‘Shonar Bangla’ (Golden Bengal). Actually, it was an intimidating task. Even at this time, many raised questions concerning the viability and stability of Bangladesh as nation-building in a new state was not a fairly easy task. For instance, during his stop by at Dhaka in 1974, Henry Kissinger termed Bangladesh as a ‘bottomless basket’. Ambassador U. Alexis Johnson defined the newly born state, Bangladesh as an ‘international basket case’. However, Bangabandhu could overcome those predictions and speculations through his visionary leadership.

On October 4, 2019, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina wrote in the Print that “Beyond self-sufficiency, we are now the fourth-largest in rice production, second-largest in jute production, fourth-largest in mango production, fifth-largest in vegetable production and fourth-largest in inland fisheries in the world’. Since 2009, Bangladesh has been attaining a lot more than 6 percent growth. The united states graduated to a lower-middle-income nation in 2015 during 2018; the united states met the UN requirements for graduating from the ‘least developed country’ status by 2024. Bangladesh is among the key players in the global textile industry. That is, actually, tremendous achievements for Bangladesh. Behind such achievement, the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina played an essential role together with the effort of the tens of thousands of farmers, factory employees, garments workers, along with other classes of people in the united kingdom. Bangladesh has been awarded the ‘South-South Award’ in 2013 to create impressive progress in poverty alleviation. If one looks at few forecasts, in accordance with a report of UK-based firm PwC, Bangladesh will undoubtedly be the 23rd greatest world economy by 2050. Furthermore, the Goldman Sach forecasts Bangladesh among the countries in ‘N11’ after BRICS who will dominate the near-future world economy.

Bangladesh gets the potential to become the economic hub in South Asia which requires regional and global financial cooperation. Under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh is preparing 100 special financial zones for major investors that may create occupations for millions alongside increased economic growth that may contribute immensely to the overall socio-economic development of Bangladesh. To attract foreign direct investments, Bangladesh enacted One-Stop Service Act in 2018 to supply all the required services to investors from exactly the same point. In addition, Bangladesh supplies the most liberal and congenial investment regime in South Asia. Notably, the GDP of Bangladesh is continuing to grow from US$102 billion in 2009 2009 to US$302 billion in 2019. You can also remember that foreign direct investment in addition has increased from US$ 700 million in 2009 2009 to US$ 3613 million in 2018. In 2018, Bangladesh was the next recipient of FDI in South Asia.

After to arrive power in '09 2009, the Sheikh Hasina government set several targets for Bangladesh, i.e. to attain the status of a middle-income country by 2021, accomplishing the SDG goals by 2030, becoming a developed country by 2041, learning to be a miracle by 2071, and executing a delta plan by 2100. Thus, you can argue that under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh continues with specific targets at heart. Many argue that Bangladesh can be a developed nation by 2041 if the existing political stability in the united kingdom under the Sheikh Hasina regime continues combined with the supports from the major development partners. Among the major strengths for Bangladesh is that among 170 million persons more than 60 % are energetic and dynamic youths who can contribute immensely to the overall development of the united states. The world needs to know that Bangladesh is not any more an ‘international basket case’. And because of this success, Bangladesh and its persons sincerely appreciate the cooperation from the international community.