Home ›› 16 Dec 2022 ›› Front
Bangladesh has come a very long way since its cruel birth more than five decades ago, with the country’s economy hitting $465 billion in FY22, from a meagre $8.75 billion in 1971. The nation posted 5.48 per cent negative GDP growth in 1971, which climbed to 7.25 per cent in FY22.
Bangladesh, a country with a penchant for defying all odds, is observing its 51st Victory Day today.
After snatching victory from the occupational Pakistani forces, Bangladesh inherited a poor, undiversified economy, characterised by an under-developed infrastructure, stagnant agriculture, and a rapidly growing population.
The great challenge that laid ahead of the then newborn nation was to rebuild the country›s economy to ensure peoples’ wellbeing and keep them free from hunger.
In 1973, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman concentrated on rebuilding the country, and gradually turning it into a self-reliant nation. This was the very goal he had in mind when he called upon the people to fight in the liberation war.
The then government felt the urgent need to provide a sense of direction and determine the order of priorities within the framework of coherent and consistent policies.
Under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s visionary and prudent leadership, the First Five Year Plan (1973-78) was formulated to guide the transformation of Bangladesh into “Sonar Bangla,” free of poverty, hunger and corruption, along with rapid income growth and shared prosperity.
“Bangladesh has prepared a Plan for reconstruction and development of the economy, taking into account the inescapable political, social and economic realities of the country. The plan has charted a course for the nation for the coming five years,” he had written in foreword as chairman of the then Planning Commission.
It is unusual for a country to prepare a National Development Plan within such a short time. In the case of Bangladesh, it is special. Because there was neither any planning machinery in the country at that time, nor comprehensive and reliable data on all aspects of the economy, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had added.
He had also said, “No plan, however well-formulated, can be implemented unless there is total commitment on the part of the people of the country to work hard and make necessary sacrifices.
“All of us will, therefore, have to dedicate ourselves to the task of nation building with single-minded determination. I am confident that our people will devote themselves to this task with as much courage and vigour as they demonstrated during the war of liberation.”
It is widely believed that the First Five Year Plan announced by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman cemented the foundation of Bangladesh economy, which later turned into a role model across the globe.
Under the current leadership of his daughter Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh made stunning economic and social progress, paving the way to graduate to a developing country by 2026.
Sheikh Hasina, in a message on Eighth Five Year Plan, said, “We inherited a very fragile economy when we formed the government following a landslide victory in the general election of 2008.
“By then, there was stagnation in the backbone sectors such as energy and power, communication, and foreign exchange reserves, including other socio-economic indicators.”
She added, “The Awami League government was able to restore the momentum of that sluggish economy back on track by adopting a well-planned path of growth very quickly. In less than a decade, our GDP growth even surpassed 8.0 per cent.
“Presently, our economy is functioning satisfactorily. Keeping all impediments of the COVID-19 pandemic in mind, we have prepared the Eighth Five Year Plan.”
Bangladesh is now a food-surplus country, with rice production rising by around four times to 38.7 million metric tons in FY21 from 10.8 million metric tons in 1971.
With consistent policy support and resilient entrepreneurs, Bangladesh’s economy transformed from agricultural dependence to industry and service sector-based growth.
In FY73, the agricultural sector contributed 49.57 per cent to the GDP, while industry and service sector held 12.56 per cent and 37.86 per cent respectively.
But in FY22, the agricultural sector contributed 11.50 per cent to the GDP, while industry and service sector held 37.07 per cent and 51.44 per cent respectively.
Bangladesh’s exports stood at $52 billion riding on the RMG sector, the $42.621 billion industry, the largest contributor to foreign currency earnings. All exports contribute over 10 per cent to Bangladesh’s GDP.
When Bangladesh achieved liberation from Pakistan, it had only $270 million in reserve. Now, Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves stands at $33.92 billion as of December 7, 2022. Reserves reached its highest peak of $48 billion in August 2021.
Riding on the progress in social and economic indicators attained over the last decade, Bangladesh is all set to graduate to a developing country by 2026.
In ensuring the smother graduation and retaining growth, economists and industry people recommended proper
implementation of plans and a corruption free robust administration.
Former lead economist of World Bank Dhaka Office Zahid Hussain said, “Bangladesh is now on the right track to attain development goals with the present state of economy, but the nation needs a sustainable system for peaceful transition of power.”
Bangladesh’s 8th Five-Year Plan has set targets to attain 8.51 per cent GDP growth and reduce the poverty rate to 15.6 per cent at the end of this period.
The key task of the 8FYP is to start the implementation of PP2041 in a way that brings Bangladesh closer to the goals of attaining UMIC status, attaining major SDG targets, and eliminating extreme poverty by FY2031.
On the issue, Zahid said, “In the Eighth Five Year Plan, there is positive speech about the objectives and strategy of the plans, but it severely lacks implementation because of a lack of skilled manpower and corruption.
“However, in reaping the benefits, there is a strong need for skilled and corruption-free administration to run the country, who will lead development activities to a new level regardless of political parties in power.”
Businesses also echoed the voice of this economist.
Rizwan Rahman, president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), told The Business Post, “Corruption, social injustice, lawlessness and inefficiency are holding back Bangladesh’s development process, and the nation’s economic lifeline – the private sector.
“Undue costs plaguing almost every aspect of the country’s economy is causing a negative domino effect on the stakeholders, and also the public.”
The malpractice and corruption across our society must be removed through full-fledged digital automation of economic operations, to attain the economic objectives with the ideal spirit of liberation war in future, he added.
This report uses data from a multitude of reliable and reputed sources, especially the Bangladesh Bank, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), and Planning Commission.
The author is the chief reporter of The Business Post. He can be reached at sazermaya@gmail.com
