Abdur Rashid Mia (32) from Narsingdi went to Saudi Arabia in June 2022. However, each step of his journey there was complicated – from getting his passport, to completing his medical check-ups, paying for his tickets and, finally, getting a job.

Bangladesh has come a long way in weaving its inspirational tale of incredible success as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.

Like the previous years, The Daily Star is proud to present to you yet another colourful, well-illustrated 216-page special supplement in five segments on the occasion of its 32nd Anniversary. SEGMENT 1, which appears today, is titled: “Towards a smart Bangladesh”; SEGMENT 2: “The changing middle-class story” will appear on February 13; SEGMENT 3: “Where Showbiz meets the Internet” on February 15; SEGMENT 4: “In with the new: Lifestyle Chronicles” on February 16; and SEGMENT 5: “Celebrating the inspirers” on February 19.

Despite overcoming its many economic challenges, one obstacle Bangladesh continues to struggle with is creating enough quality employment opportunities for its young population.

As per the decision of the UN General Assembly held in November 2021, Bangladesh is set to graduate out of the group of least developed countries (LDCs) on November 24, 2026, about 50 years after it first became a member of this cohort of developing countries in December 1975.

How often have you heard the term “hundi” recently? I would bet quite a few times, especially if you’ve been following the worried discussions surrounding the cost-of-living crisis and economic downturn, both at home and abroad.

Energy crises are not rare, but a crisis of this magnitude that tends to derail world economic progress is.

​​​​​​​The United Nations Committee on Development Policy (UN-CDP) determined in February 2021 that Bangladesh has satisfied all three requirements to graduate from the category of Least Developed Country (LDC) for the second time.

If you ask someone from a country with a decent economy whether the central bank should be allowed to exercise independence in its policymaking, they will say that not giving independence to the central bank is like letting someone drive a car while keeping their hands tied behind their back. The question is not why, but how to give more independence to the institution.

Bangladesh is poised to join the ranks of middle-income countries in 2026, and industrial growth will form the backbone of our economy as we make this transition.

The agriculture sector is one of the key economic pillars of Bangladesh. Just after liberation in 1971, its contribution to GDP was around 60 percent.

Fossil fuel and electricity subsidy is widely provided all over the world. A subsidy is a product of the political economy. Access to affordable energy is now a basic human right.

Like every year, our banking sector had been in the news in 2022, and mostly for the wrong reasons.

As we enter the third year of this decade, we have only seven more years until 2030 to tackle the major global problems of climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

One significant dimension that has emerged in Bangladesh in recent decades is the expansion of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Economists and policymakers, influenced by economists, tend to look at education as a homogeneous and highly aggregated category.

As we head into 2023, there is a sense of trepidation in the business landscape. As 2022 drew to a close, it felt at times like many companies were limping towards the end of the year.

We live in the age of data. Today, as I write this article nearing midnight, almost 2.5 quintillion bytes of data have been generated globally.

In the last two months of 2022, two large global events took place on two continents flanking the Atlantic Ocean. In November, around 35,000 people met at the Egyptian tourist city of Sharm El-Sheikh for the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27).

Economic growth and business development are highly dependent on the business climate created by socio-economic policies and political decisions of governments.