After a summer of unrest, Bangladesh is seeking a reset under its brand-new interim government. Led by 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, the Bangladeshi government is beginning to engage with — and host — representatives from other countries to kick-start a return to normalcy.
In his first policy address in August, Yunus praised the “revolutionary” students who toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government and admitted that he “took over a country which was in many ways a complete mess.” He asserted, however, that "Bangladesh stands at the crossroads of a new beginning,” and that the country was poised to “chart a new democratic future.”
A visiting U.S. delegation, led by the assistant treasury secretary for international finance, met with Yunus last Sunday. The same day, USAID provided a broad US$202-million grant to Dhaka. The U.S. embassy in Dhaka stated that "with the right economic reforms ... the American private sector can help unlock Bangladesh's growth potential through trade and investment.”
On Tuesday, Germany announced a €1-billion grant, issued over the next 10 years, to assist Bangladesh in dealing with the effects of climate change.
Dhaka’s uphill battle
The GDP of Bangladesh — the world’s eighth-most populous nation — is expected to grow by 6.1 per cent in 2024 and 6.6 per cent in 2025, according to Asian Development Bank projections.
But the new government must confront a catalogue of pressing, pernicious issues.
“Bangladesh's economy suffered an estimated US$10-billion loss during the recent unrest that led to Hasina’s ouster,” according to APF Canada’s South Asia team. “The Chittagong Port, through which more than 90 per cent of the country's international trade transits, also faced major disruptions.”
Stubbornly high inflation rates, unemployment, and strained ties with India will also complicate the country’s path to prosperity. Additionally, unrest simmers: last month, clashes between students and the Bangladesh Ansar — a paramilitary group with six million members — killed one person and injured 40.
