Bangladesh, unlike what was described long ago as a “basket case” requiring the world to feed it, is increasingly and commendably becoming a success story. Under the able leadership of Sheikh Hasina for several years, the nation born in 1971 after extricating itself from the Pakistani military clutches has grown by leaps and bounds. It is today all set to emerge as a “developing nation” after being in the “low growth” category for some decades. Good governance is broadly conceived as proper management of the economy in ways that could ensure a steady growth, maintenance of law and order, upkeep of good external relations, and ensuring political stability. The governance of Hasina, daughter of Independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, fulfills all these requirements. Bangladesh’s economy is growing at around seven per cent as per GDP figures and might even clock a growth of nine per cent, while India ails with minus growth figures.
On Thursday, the government told parliament it intends to spend $71 billion to spur economic activities this fiscal, a 12 per cent increase from the last fiscal’s (revised) plan spend. This could result in a widening of the fiscal deficit from 6.1 per cent to no more than 6.2 per cent. The aim had ideally been to reduce the deficit to five per cent. India’s fiscal deficit for the past year was 9.3 per cent of the GDP.Careful management of the economy, the 37th largest in the world as against India at seven, has been a strong-point with Bangladesh under Sheikh Hasina. In the last one decade, poverty in Bangladesh, a nation of 16 crore people had reduced by one-third. There have been major improvements in the human development index too as cited by the UN. Curiously, when the economy of Pakistan is seriously ailing and its internal tensions growing, Bangladesh is looking forward, its economy having registered sustainable growth at the rate of around seven per cent average in the past five years.
Bangladesh’s economy is powered by income from its garments exports, based on its strengths in cotton cultivation. Other salient factors are the involvement of women in large numbers in this industry, the foreign exchange inflows from overseas workforce, and trade support the nation gets from the US. Bangladesh also acts as the maritime hub for nations like Bhutan and Nepal.The handling of the political situation in Bangladesh is also commendable in recent years, with the Opposition scouting around in the sidelines and the law and order being firmly under control, Bangladesh has been able to focus on its economic growth. Soon it will no longer be India’s poorer neighbour as many like to believe and there might be a reverse flow of the diaspora to Bangladesh.
