Bangladesh held its first fair, competitive election in nearly two decades last week, with rivals of the ousted Sheikh Hasina — the country’s long-time authoritarian leader, who fled in 2024 following a youth-led uprising — securing a majority.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party won 209 out of 300 seats, and Jamaat-e-Islami, an Islamist party, won 68 seats. Voter turnout was 59.44 per cent.
BNP party chairman Tarique Rahman, in exile in London for the past 17 years, was sworn in on Tuesday as prime minister. According to the Dhaka Tribune, for BNP members, “the day symbolized both political restoration and emotional closure after years of legal battles, imprisonment, and exile.”
The new government faces an uphill battle: high youth unemployment, corruption, and sluggish industrial growth hinder the country’s economic potential.
Bangladesh’s finance minister, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, acknowledged on Wednesday that “state institutions are in very bad shape,” and said that introducing “professionalism, transparency, and efficiency” into these institutions “is the most important issue.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an ally of Hasina, congratulated Rahman, reaffirming “India’s continued commitment to the peace, progress, and prosperity of both our peoples.” Global Affairs Canada congratulated Bangladeshi voters on social media.
INSIGHT: APF Canada's Tanya Dawar dives deep into Bangladesh's election and future, stating that, "as governance shifts in the world’s eighth-most populous country, the outcome sets the stage for a defining test of institutional reform, economic recovery, and geopolitical positioning."
