New Delhi, July 27 (IANS) Bangladesh’s care economy holds one of the country’s largest untapped economic opportunities, but it cannot be expanded on the backs of children and must be formalised to deliver decent work and rights, a new report has said.The report from Dhaka-based publication The Business Standard said the care economy which is nearly valued at 18.9 per cent of GDP remains largely invisible and unregulated, with many households relying on underage domestic workers to meet risin…
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Dhaka, July 17 (IANS) Bangladesh’s anti-graft watchdog has strongly condemned the shooting incident targeting journalists in Khulna city, calling it an attack on independent journalism and press freedom in the country, local media reported.The remarks came after gunmen opened fire on four journalists in Khulna in the early hours of July 15, while they were sitting outside a tea stall after finishing their professional duties. Among the injured was Awal Sheikh, Khulna correspondent for the Bangla…
Dhaka, July 12 (IANS) As many as five children died from measles-like symptoms in Bangladesh in the past 24 hours until 8 a.m. (local time) on Sunday, bringing the combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related fatalities to 758, local media reported. The number of suspected measles deaths has climbed to 664, while laboratory-confirmed deaths remained at 94, according to the latest data from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Bangladesh’s The Business Standard reported…
Dhaka, July 12 (IANS) At least 51 people were killed and 39 others injured in floods and landslides in Bangladesh, local media reported on Sunday, citing the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief. As many as 1,022,963 people have been affected by the floods in Bangladesh, while members of 267,918 families remain marooned. As many as 44,457 people have taken refuge in shelter centres as relief operations continue in the flood-affected areas, Bangladesh’s The Business Standard reported.The fl…
New Delhi, July 10 (IANS) Bangladesh now ranks second globally for non‑performing loans, with nearly one‑third of bank lending classified as defaulted, a new report has said.The report from Bangladesh-based The Business Standard said the country also has the highest NPL ratio among SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations largely due to weak credit discipline, politically influenced lending and poor loan recovery.Ukraine tops the global list with an NPL ratio of 37.35…
New Delhi, June 27 (IANS) Bangladesh Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury told parliament that the country’s total external debt stood at $78.22 billion as of March this year, and warned that the country’s debt‑servicing obligations are set to rise in coming years, a new report has said.Around 61.97 per cent of the external debt is concessional while 38.03 per cent is non‑concessional, the report from Dhaka-based The Business Standard cited the minister as saying.Further, the mini…
New Delhi, June 13 (IANS) Bangladesh’s official budget and revenue shortfalls may mask a deeper crisis in ethics and good governance, and the country is expected to continue in the same trend unless “corruption and extraction are reduced”, a report has said.The report from Bangladesh-based The Business Standard argued that the estimated losses from corruption, overpricing, inefficiency, and systemic extraction could possibly exceed the budget deficit itself.The National Board of Revenue has as…
Dhaka, May 31 (IANS) A group of Chinese nationals was seen filming slums, narrow lanes, and even inside the people’s homes in Techpara of Bangladesh’s Uttara, a report noted.As per the report, nobody, including local police, seems to know who they are, who they work for, or where the footage is going.Mohammad Badal, a local resident, said that the Chinese vloggers entered houses and took various videos as well as when a fight broke out. They came back in a group with the police, Bangladesh’s The…
New Delhi, May 28 (IANS) A United States-Bangladesh trade deal, signed by Dhaka’s then Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, has come under severe criticism since an elected government under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman assumed office this February.The government will take steps regarding the trade agreement signed with Washington while preserving Bangladesh’s sovereignty and rights, ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) lawmaker and Economic Affairs Secretary of the party’s central comm…
Dhaka, May 28 (IANS) Several women’s rights activists, academics, artists, and civil society members in Bangladesh have expressed grave concern over a recent directive issued by state-owned radio broadcaster Bangladesh Betar regarding the dress code for female news presenters. The guidelines instructed presenters to wear sarees or salwar-kameez with dupattas, while discouraging “large bindis” and advising against draping the dupatta on one side, local media reported.In an open letter addressed t…