Photo : TDM
Bangladesh has made significant progress in its socio-economic conditions over the past more than a century. The country has achieved sustained high growth, and people's lives are changing as poverty is reduced at a significant rate. The country has a strong track record of growth and development, even in times of elevated global uncertainty.
The country has made spectacular economic progress over the last five decades, and its GDP growth rate has reached an impressive record level in the latest decade. Bangladesh has been on track to become a developed country in 2026, and it aims to become an upper middle-income country by 2031 and a developed country by 2041.
Through Vision 2041's implementation, the government aims to eradicate extreme poverty by 2031 and reduce poverty to below 3 percent by 2041. Bangladesh has diversified away from an agrarian to a more manufacturing-based economy with rapid growth in the ready-made garment industry.
Bangladesh has also imparted new lessons to the world on how to cope with challenges arising from climate change. Through multipurpose shelters that also operate as primary schools, embankments, and early warning systems, cyclone-related fatalities have decreased by 100-fold since independence.
The crisis between Russia and Ukraine that started in early 2022 is an unwanted problem for our country. In this global crisis, price instability is created along with the supply of fuel oil and food products on the world market. It has caused us problems like other countries in the world. The Russia-Ukraine war has hampered our development to some extent without overcoming the damage caused by the pandemic. In Vision 2041 announced by the government, two main visions are: (a) Bangladesh will be a developed country by 2041, with a per capita income of more than twelve and a half thousand US dollars at current market prices and will keep pace with the digital world; and (b) poverty and hunger will be completely eliminated.
For this purpose, the government is working to develop skilled human resources. This programme is being taken forward with an emphasis on ICT education and training. The government is aiming to create 3 million additional jobs by 2025. Bangladesh needs to create jobs and employment opportunities to meet its goal of transitioning to an upper-middle-income country by 2031.
Implementing 'Food for Work'" and 'Employment for Rural Extreme Poverty' programmes to generate rural employment and prevent seasonal unemployment Initiatives have also been taken to expand their scope. Emphasis is placed on women's empowerment. As a result, women's participation in the labour force is increasing. On the supply side, the country's new labour force will grow at a rate of 2.2 percent per year, significantly faster than population growth. The government has set a target of reducing the poverty rate to 12.3 percent and the extreme poverty rate to 4.5 percent by the 2023–24 financial year.
It is working with the aim of bringing underprivileged people of various classes and professions under the social safety net program. To ensure transparency in the disbursement of various financial cash assistances, direct cash payments are being made to the beneficiaries using the G2P system using their national identity cards. The social safety net programme has been expanded to include the 262 poorest upazilas in the country. The Hon'ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has given importance to the cultivation of crops on uncultivated land with the aim of increasing productivity and income and improving the quality of life of the large population in rural areas.
With the aim of providing all the modern facilities of the city to the villages in a phased manner, the 'My Village, My Town' project is being implemented. The government has continued its efforts to develop a self-sufficient and sustainable modern agriculture sector by modernising crop production and marketing activities through innovation and the transfer of appropriate technologies and crop varieties to ensure food security. To increase agricultural production, the government is providing subsidies, incentives, and rehabilitation assistance in this sector.
With the aim of agricultural mechanisation, the government is providing agricultural machinery to farmers at a subsidised rate of 50 to 70 percent. The government is playing an important role in meeting the nutritional needs of the people. Bangladesh has already achieved self-sufficiency in fish, meat, and egg production and will soon be able to achieve self-sufficiency in milk production. Bangladesh is already earning Indian currency by exporting fish and fishery products and animal products, besides meeting its domestic demand for meat.
The government has given top priority to the health sector to ensure healthcare for all. Its objective is to create a healthy and productive population by providing quality healthcare and nutrition at an affordable cost. Various activities have been and are being conducted to improve maternal and child health. For the proper physical and mental development of teenagers, various health-related services are being provided through the Union Health and Family Welfare Centre, Kishorebandhav Health Corner.
The government has been giving utmost importance to the education, science, and technology sectors. Improving the overall quality of education, eliminating disparity in education, and working to improve technical and madrasa education Implementing specific action plans, including infrastructure development, to create skilled manpower to meet the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution. The government is giving utmost importance to the digitization of the economy, as digitization not only ensures institutional efficiency and good governance but also contributes to an increase in the productivity of materials. All business activities in the digital economy are carried out through the use of information and communication technology. The vision of Digital Bangladesh is being implemented in five parts. These are connectivity and infrastructure, e-government, human resource development, expansion of the ICT industry, and the formulation of laws, rules, and policies. The government is working to increase ICT sector exports to $5 billion by 2025. Establishing a cashless society is one of the goals of the government.
Based on the success of Vision 2021, the government is announcing Vision 2041. Through the implementation of Vision 2041, ensuring good governance in all areas of society, eradicating poverty, developing human resources through quality education, ensuring food security, eliminating nutritional inequality, and building the golden Bangladesh of Bangabandhu's dream through sustainable development.
TDM/SD
