Uncertain politics, unsettling economy
Bangladesh's much-anticipated parliamentary elections are scheduled for next February. And they could not have come at a more fraught time for the country. More than 16 months have passed since the interim administration took office, and unofficial estimates indicate a downward trend in the government's approval ratings.
7 December 2025, 07:00 AM
Can Mamdani deliver on the issues that secured his win?
This was the first election since Trump took office in January that provided an opportunity to gauge voters' current political mood.
10 November 2025, 05:00 AM
Japan has opened its door for Bangladesh, let’s not ruin it
Bangladesh plans to send one lakh people to Japan over the next five years.
25 October 2025, 04:00 AM
Will the upcoming election stabilise Bangladesh-India relations?
There are several areas where Bangladesh and India can collaborate.
14 October 2025, 04:00 AM
Remembering Salahuddin Ahmed, a mentor and friend
Salahuddin Ahmed had a career that only a few can imagine.
28 September 2025, 06:39 AM
AN OPEN DIALOGUE / Ukraine’s peace lies in compromise
Before Biden, various US presidents had respected an unwritten understanding between Russia and the West that Ukraine would not be invited to join NATO.
25 August 2025, 05:00 AM
AN OPEN DIALOGUE / Why opinion polls still matter
Opinion polls are, in a sense, a necessary evil. They can often incur the wrath of those in power, or of individuals whose views are not corroborated by, or match, the information provided by a survey.
10 August 2025, 04:00 AM
Bangladesh in the age of global economic flux
Any casual observer of the recent global scenario can see a constant shift in global crosscurrents.
27 July 2025, 06:00 AM
The Afghan government and its future
The sudden collapse of the US-backed Ghani regime in Afghanistan and the scenes of the evacuation of American citizens at Kabul Airport brought back some deep-buried memories of mine from another era.
29 August 2021, 18:00 PM
What can we do if inflation is back?
Why talk about inflation in the midst of the pandemic, one might ask. The answer is simple, if somewhat unpleasant. Inflation may soon be making a comeback!
19 August 2021, 18:00 PM
The effect of the Delta variant in uncertain times
For Bangladesh, the Delta variant of Covid-19 virus couldn’t have come at a worse time. Starting in January, our infection rate had been going down and was below 300 per day in mid-February.
5 August 2021, 18:00 PM
Crisis in the oil market and EU’s new environmental plan
Two recent news items, apparently unrelated, caught my attention.
24 July 2021, 18:00 PM
To overcome vaccine apartheid, we need solid plans
It bears repeating that vaccines are essential for protection against the deadly coronavirus. We’ve seen how the virus spares no one and targets the most vulnerable people, including those who have pre-existing health conditions or comorbidities.
8 July 2021, 18:00 PM
Why can’t they get their fair share in our budget?
In Bangladesh, while the pandemic has impacted businesses of all sizes, plus life and livelihood, evidence is mounting that the enterprises that employ between 1 and 249 workers—officially the micro, small and medium enterprises—are bearing the brunt of the economic slowdown.
26 June 2021, 18:00 PM
Will G7 and COP26 herald a new era?
As the world strives to fast-forward the economy in an attempt to recover from the pandemic, climate change has rightly emerged as a major concern in all international forums.
10 June 2021, 18:00 PM
Should vaccines be considered ‘global public goods’?
The Daily Star newspaper recently announced on its front page, “COVID Vaccines. One Lakh Pfizer Shots to Arrive Next Month” (May 19, 2021).
29 May 2021, 18:00 PM
What we need to know about artificial intelligence and privacy rights
Nobel Prize-winning author Kazuo Ishiguro’s latest novel Klara and the Sun, his first since receiving the award in literature in 2017, has some relevance for policymakers and ordinary citizens across the globe.
19 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Food insecurity increases amidst the latest Covid-19 spike
Food insecurity in Bangladesh during the pandemic is rising. Even in the best of times, millions of people in the country go hungry.
3 May 2021, 18:00 PM
World faces a looming crisis compounded by vaccine inequities
In a world that has always favoured the rich over the poor—both within a country and across nations—the Covid-19 pandemic will worsen this maldistribution further unless actions are taken soon to rectify it.
17 April 2021, 18:00 PM
The latest Suez crisis and the economic fallout
The latest crisis surrounding the Suez Canal appears to have come to a favourable resolution, avoiding a full-blown disaster. The world was watching with bated breath for almost 10 days, as the Suez Canal drama was playing out last week.
3 April 2021, 18:00 PM
NRB expertise and skills must be tapped aggressively
Non-resident Bangladeshis (NRB) have played an important role in the economic growth of the motherland. Whether it is the remittances we are talking about or the “diaspora network” that facilitates technology transfer,
30 March 2021, 18:00 PM
What path lies ahead for Afghanistan?
From 1979 onwards, since the Soviet Army moved into Afghanistan to support Babrak Karmal and the communist regime, the country has been embroiled in one conflict after another.
20 March 2021, 18:00 PM
Can raising the minimum wage sometimes hurt the workers?
Raising the minimum wage is supposed to benefit the workers, particularly those who are making less than the minimum and are struggling to make a decent living.
20 February 2021, 18:00 PM
Skill set workers need for the future job market
As we fight to overcome the damages done by the Covid-19 pandemic and restart and recalibrate our economies, this is a golden opportunity to ask what we can do to prepare ourselves better for the next decade. One thing is certain.
18 February 2021, 18:00 PM
How can our new graduates stay ahead in the tough job market?
I entered the job market when I was a graduate student at Dhaka University and have switched jobs many times since then.
6 February 2021, 18:00 PM
A case for improving labour conditions in Southeast Asia
It has been well-known for a long time that Bangladeshi migrant workers in the Middle East and South Asian countries are at the receiving end of all sorts of uncertainties one can think of.
20 January 2021, 18:00 PM
Brexit, the EU-UK agreement, and the economic impact
Some politicians promise an El Dorado if you vote them into power. Others tell stories, some true and some not so, to get the voters to believe them.
9 January 2021, 18:00 PM
Reasons to be optimistic about the economic prospects for 2021
End of the year op-eds, or the thought of it, bring for me anxiety as well as joy. I feel anxious because I can’t decide what to write about, or find issues to vent about, as the year draws to a close.
26 December 2020, 18:00 PM