Welcome resumption of businesses

We welcome the government’s decision to open all businesses from today. We urged the government earlier in this column to open all business activities as we cannot put in jeopardy livelihoods of millions of workers and employers.

We believe that lockdown is not the answer to the pandemic. We have noticed the detrimental impacts of nation-wide lockdowns especially on low-income, subsistence workers and workers who are dependent on daily wages. The authorities have made it clear that livelihood concerns of the poor can no longer be overlooked.

Even in normal times raising funds can prove to be difficult for small businesses and startups and even more so in times like the ongoing pandemic. We must add here that there should not be any compromises regarding maintaining the strictest health standards in the business units once they are opened. As a matter of fact, it would be easier to bring the workers and other employees under the vaccination programme with businesses resuming today.

If the markets are shut, demand will naturally fall. Any prolonged shutdown means that demand will go down. Production cannot continue if sales stop. All steps should be taken to ensure that the country does not get in the quagmire of such a vicious cycle. So, the authorities must take into consideration all possible factors before any knee-jerk declaration like a future lockdown is imposed. In fact, most countries in the world have now started loosening restrictions and are gradually opening up economic activities though in some cases the curve is still far from flattening. In the USA it has been seen that the states that are more open are doing better in terms of health and economic performance than those that are more restrictive.

In a country like Bangladesh blanket lockdowns are not sustainable. Experts say that the Covid pandemic is not going away anytime soon. Bangladeshis are a resilient and innovative people. They will have to learn to live with the pandemic. The greatest challenge we face in the current crisis is striking the right balance between preventing not only the damage inflicted by Covid-19 but also that which comes from a severe contraction of economic activity. This challenge needs to be met as the economy must not be allowed to screech to a grinding halt.

We do agree that urgent actions need to be taken to combat the Covid 19 pandemic. However, these actions should be taken swiftly but not hastily. Taking a one-size-fits-all approach does not necessarily fit with the needs of Bangladesh and most of the developing world. A very large number of Bangladeshis are part of the informal economy. These workers often have no savings and need the money they earn each day to feed their family. In the developed countries the social safety network is strong and wide. In Bangladesh there is little data available on those working in the informal sector and consequently providing financial aid to them is virtually an impossible task for the government.

We admit that the lockdowns may have been justified at the beginning of the pandemic, when so little was known about the virus and the ways to contain it. But now that we know a lot more, there is little justification for continuing lockdowns, which though it might sound harsh, have been a failed experiment.

The irony is that the lockdowns, in addition to causing all sorts of misery, are not even stopping the spread of the virus. While the economic and social costs have been enormous, it is far from clear that the lockdowns have brought significant health benefits. Focusing only on the health challenges and not paying attention to the economic issues will result in significantly higher economic costs, and will also undermine the health imperatives.

Sweeping restrictions have been counterproductive. The country has paid a huge price. However, with things turning to normal the tenacious Bangladesh economy is likely to bounce back.