Why Bangladesh’s small producers struggle to scale, and how to help them

Bangladesh is generating economic activity faster than it is building firms.
21 June 2026

How to restore the moral compass of corporate banking

For years, corporate banking in Bangladesh has been built not simply on lending but also on stewardship.
20 June 2026

Can the climate budget be just if resilience is ‘subsidised’ by women’s unpaid care work?

The allocation for climate action in the proposed budget for FY2026-27 deserves recognition.
20 June 2026

We cannot avoid the moral questions behind the measles and Ad-din crises

Reading a recent report by The Daily Star on the number of measles victims, I could not help but link the number “666” printed in red with something ominous.
20 June 2026

Does the government really want an independent NHRC?

The people of Bangladesh have suffered too heavily for too long from abuse of power, lack of accountable governance, deficits in the rule of law and access to justice, and multidimensional violations of human rights.
20 June 2026

Five ideas to turn PM’s Malaysia visit into a strategic reset in ties

When Prime Minister Tarique Rahman lands in Kuala Lumpur on June 21, the weight of this visit will be unmistakable.
19 June 2026

What the FY2026-27 budget reveals about Bangladesh’s climate priorities

For Bangladesh, climate change is no longer merely an environmental concern. It is increasingly a development, economic, and governance challenge.
19 June 2026

In planting 25 crore trees, we must not lose sight of the bigger picture

The BNP government unveiled an ambitious plan to plant 25 crore trees over the next five years as part of its election pledge.
19 June 2026

Turning the budget’s ambitions into reality will be a major test

There is always many a slip between the cup and the lip, which reminds us of the budget’s implementation challenge
19 June 2026

Budget 2026-27 exposes gaps in renewable energy rollout

Those in power often express a strong commitment to renewable energy transition, but this commitment is not adequately reflected in the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27.
18 June 2026

Countering online hate speech in Bangladesh needs a collective response

Consider what happened to dozens of women across Bangladesh during the political transition of 2024.
18 June 2026

Benazir’s arrest is only the start of Bangladesh's accountability test

Benazir Ahmed’s arrest in Dubai is significant in that it marks an important first step in a much longer pursuit of accountability.
18 June 2026

The budget has revived focus on blue economy, but there's a lot of catching up to do

On July 7, 2014, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague handed Bangladesh the second half of its maritime triumph.
18 June 2026

Why the Oxford Union’s Bangladesh ‘debate’ sparked controversy

The issue was not about who spoke, but about who did not speak.
17 June 2026

How data centres are draining water and energy from the Global South

The story started in Georgia, US—not with a law being broken in some faraway place, but with residents noticing something wrong in their own homes: the water pressure kept dropping unusually.
17 June 2026

A welcome pivot to logistics reform in the budget, but time for a commission

The proposed national budget for FY2026-27 deserves recognition for placing logistics and trade facilitation closer to the centre of Bangladesh’s economic transformation agenda.
17 June 2026

Amid rising debt pressures, a case for sukuk to ease the burden

The government’s proposed Tk 9.38 lakh crore budget for FY2026-27 is the largest in Bangladesh’s history.
17 June 2026

Bangladesh needs a new social contract for higher education

When it comes to higher education, Bangladesh does not have a funding problem; what it has, instead, is an accountability problem.
17 June 2026

Solarising three-wheelers should be our next step in clean mobility

For years, battery-run three-wheelers have operated largely outside the scope of formal regulation. Attempting to ban them altogether (as is commonly suggested) would neither be practical nor economically sound. A better approach would be to modernise and retrofit the existing fleet in phases while also keeping in mind the safety of passengers and drivers.
16 June 2026

Breaking with the past: Building institutions that prevent torture

On this International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, Bangladesh has the chance to lead, not only through words but through action.
16 June 2026