Energy crisis: Global problem, local failure

As a result, on the one hand, the government claims that there is sufficient stock, news reports highlight the arrival of successive fuel shipments, and there are accounts of Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) depots overflowing with fuel.
26 April 2026, 09:00 AM

The PMO needs a policy and programme coordination cell

In Bangladesh, big policy ideas have never been in short supply.
25 April 2026, 13:00 PM

The silent exclusion built into Bangladesh’s ID system

When Haya (not real name) applied for an e-passport recently, the form allowed her to provide either her parents’ names or those of a legal guardian. She listed her guardian.
25 April 2026, 11:00 AM

Reimagining sustainability from the ground up

Recently, my university came together to celebrate a day that could have been just another checkbox for ranking metrics or media optics.
25 April 2026, 10:00 AM

Uneven heat: How Bangladesh’s power cuts draw a map of inequality

Bangladesh’s power shortage has increased recently, placing additional strain on an already stretched national grid.
25 April 2026, 09:00 AM

Climate change demands a smarter approach to healthcare

On a hot, humid morning in the coastal village of Satkhira, Rahima Begum wades through waist-deep saline water to reach the nearest health facility.
24 April 2026, 13:00 PM

‘Even BNP is not beyond ICT’s reach if it commits crimes against humanity’

Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Md Asaduzzaman, who previously served as the 17th attorney general during the interim government’s tenure, speaks with Baharam Khan of The Daily Star
24 April 2026, 09:00 AM

When independent newspapers burn, so does democracy

When independent, objective and fact-based newspapers are set on fire, it is democracy that burns.
24 April 2026, 00:00 AM

Ecocide is hard to litigate, but we must still demand accountability

We like our crimes tidy. A victim, a perpetrator, a sequence of events that can be narrated without requiring a climate scientist, three expert witnesses, and a decade of satellite data.
23 April 2026, 12:00 PM

Rethinking canal dredging to improve flood management

As another monsoon season approaches, the government’s current canal dredging programme can be a core option for flood preparedness.
23 April 2026, 10:00 AM

Global buyers must share the cost in RMG’s green transition

For years, Bangladesh’s export success was built on a simple promise to global buyers. We would deliver at scale, at speed, and at low cost.
23 April 2026, 09:00 AM

How to grow more rice without draining the land

Over the past 25 years, Bangladesh has added nearly five crore people to its population, intensifying pressure on the country’s staple: rice.
23 April 2026, 08:00 AM

Nutritional literacy can reduce healthcare costs in Bangladesh

The proverb “Health is wealth” is widely quoted but remains overlooked in practice in our society.
22 April 2026, 13:00 PM

How poor governance broke Bangladesh's immunisation model

Bangladesh’s Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) has long been one of the country’s most celebrated public health successes.
22 April 2026, 10:00 AM

When a cartoon becomes a crime, again

In August 2024, shortly after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s regime, BNP’s then Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman made a statement that earned him rare political capital, particularly in progressive and liberal circles.
22 April 2026, 08:00 AM

Why Bangladesh is losing the innovation race

If you walk into a random classroom in Bangladesh and ask the students what they want to be when they grow up, there are some fairly common answers that might reach your ears.
21 April 2026, 23:00 PM

Fifty seats for women, but who will they really represent?

By mid-May, the parliament will have completed the process of filling the 50 reserved seats for women.
21 April 2026, 13:00 PM

West Bengal poll politics tests the limits of Dhaka-Delhi reset process

That three-word formulation has become the defining doctrine of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the run-up to West Bengal’s two-phase assembly elections scheduled for April 23 and 29.
21 April 2026, 09:00 AM

IMF-World Bank Spring meetings 2026 reveal limits of multilateralism in turbulent times

The 2026 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group took place from April 13 to April 18 amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, persistent inflation, and slowing growth.
21 April 2026, 08:00 AM

The case for a National Security Council that is truly fit for purpose

In its election manifesto, BNP mentioned plans to establish a National Security Council alongside formulating a new national security strategy (page 21, under “Defence System”).
20 April 2026, 13:00 PM