Tag Archives: Bangladesh

World Bank Lowers Bangladesh’s Growth Forecast Citing Political Instability

Posted on by
Reply

The World Bank has revised Bangladesh’s economic growth projection for the fiscal year 2024-25, lowering it to 4%, down from an earlier estimate of 5.2%. This adjustment comes in response to the political unrest that has shaken the country, creating significant economic and political uncertainty.

In its South Asia Development Update for October 2024, the World Bank emphasized how the political turmoil of July and August has disrupted the nation’s economic performance, directly impacting its gross domestic product (GDP) growth. Supply chain disruptions and investor hesitancy have further contributed to the economic slowdown.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) also recently cut its growth forecast for Bangladesh, revising it to 5.1% for the current fiscal year. The ADB cited similar concerns, noting that the political unrest over the past few months has created challenges for Bangladesh’s supply chains, adding pressure to its economic outlook.

Bangladesh and the Maldives stand out as the only two South Asian countries where the World Bank has downgraded growth forecasts. This reflects the unique political and economic hurdles facing both nations. Inflationary pressures are also expected to rise, while the broader South Asian region shows more positive economic trends.

Recovery Potential 

Despite these setbacks, the World Bank remains cautiously optimistic about Bangladesh’s long-term economic prospects. The global lender foresees a gradual recovery, underpinned by key reforms in the financial sector, improved business conditions, expanded trade, and greater domestic resource mobilization.

The recent political changes in Bangladesh, including the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the appointment of an interim government following student-led protests in August, have further added to the country’s economic uncertainty. However, the World Bank’s projections for 2025-26 suggest that Bangladesh has the potential to rebound and achieve strong growth in the coming years.

While the near-term outlook for Bangladesh is clouded by political instability, the World Bank believes that with the right reforms, the nation can bounce back. Implementing structural changes in the financial sector, boosting investment, and strengthening domestic industries will be critical to ensuring long-term growth and stability.

 

CAA comes into effect, Minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan to get India Citizenship

Posted on by
Reply

The Union Home Ministry on Monday, March 11, 2024, notified the rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), providing for granting citizenship to people of certain faiths facing persecution in neighbouring countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan and it applies to those who moved to India before 2015.

An MHA spokesperson announced that immigrants eligible for citizenship under the CAA must submit their applications online through a dedicated web portal. The CAA, a key component of the BJP’s 2019 Lok Sabha manifesto, facilitates citizenship for non-Muslims, particularly Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Parsis who migrated to India before December 31, 2014, due to religious persecution in neighboring countries.

Despite protests from the Muslim community and opposition parties, the CAA was passed by Parliament in December 2019. Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed that the CAA would be implemented before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in April/May.

Shah emphasized that the CAA, which excludes Muslims because they do not face religious persecution in their home countries, aims to provide citizenship rather than revoke it. He assured Indian Muslim citizens that the bill would not affect their citizenship status and urged the opposition not to politicize the issue along communal lines.

According to Shah, the CAA seeks to grant citizenship retroactively from the immigrants’ entry into India, closing legal proceedings against them and safeguarding their business interests. Expired passports and visas of eligible minorities will not be considered illegal.

Shah highlighted the decline of minority populations in Pakistan and Bangladesh due to persecution, leading many to flee to India. He attributed the necessity of the CAA to the failure of the Nehru-Liaqat pact in safeguarding minority rights in these countries after India’s partition based on religious lines.

Bangladesh jolted by 5.2M Earthquake

Posted on by
Reply

A 5.2-magnitude earthquake jolted Dhaka on Monday, with the epicentre at 520 km away from Agargaon Seismic Centre in Dhaka at 9:02 a.m., according to athe Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD).

Kazi Zebunnesa, a meteorologist from BMD, told media that the epicentre of the earthquake was at a depth of 10 km in the Bay of Bengal and the reports of casualty and damage are still expected to be reported.

Bangladesh, which sits in a seismic zone, is prone to tremors.

Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seizes gold valued at Rs 11.65 crore being smuggled through North-East Borders, 4 held

Posted on by
Reply

11 cases of gold seizures of 121 kg in September 2022by DRI in the North East Corridor.

The recent gold seizures in the North East by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) indicate a spurt in smuggling of gold through NE borders of Bangladesh and Myanmar. While the porous borders have been used for smuggling in the past, 11 cases of gold seizures of 121 kg in September 2022alone show that the NE corridor is still extensively being used by smugglers deploying ingenious ways of concealment.

Acting on specific intelligence and in three coordinated interceptions at Patna, Delhi and Mumbai, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized65.46 kg of foreign origin gold worth Rs 33.40 crore. The gold was consigned from Aizwal to Mumbai in domestic courier consignment. The gold was concealed in gunny bags declared as clothes.

                                                 Pictures exhibiting concealment of foreign origin gold in vehicles

In yet another case of smuggling through the same route, the DRI seized another big haul of smuggled foreign origin gold weighing approximately 23.23 kg and valued at Rs.11.65 crore (approx.) which was being smuggled from Myanmar.Specific intelligence indicated that substantial quantity of foreign origin gold will be attempted to be smuggled from Champhai-Aizawl, Mizoram to Kolkata, West Bengal by carrying/concealing them in vehicle. To interdict the contraband, coordinated action was undertaken on 28th – 29th September 2022.The DRI officers mounted surveillance on the highway connecting Siliguri – Guwahati. Four passengers travelling in 2 suspect vehicles were identified and intercepted. After thorough rummaging of the two vehicles over a period of 2 days, 23.23 Kg gold concealed in the vehicle body in the form of 21 cylindrical pieces, was recovered. The gold in this case was cast in order to fit in the specifically made cavity inside the cross-member metal pipe connecting the right and left rails of chassis behind the rear wheels and suspension in both the vehicles. The recovered gold had been smuggled into India from Myanmar through Zokhawthar border in Mizoram. Four persons have been arrested in the instant case so far.

In another 9 cases in the month, DRI recovered and seized 27 kg smuggled gold form various carriers coming from North-Eastern part of the country to the rest of the country. These series of detections have helped unearth novel modus operandi of smuggling foreign origin gold into India from the North-Eastern part of the country.

Further investigation is in progress.

 

Directorate of Revenue Intelligence foils attempts of gold smuggling, seizes 65.46 kg of gold at Mumbai, Patna, Delhi

Rohingya Refugees and Locals Work Together to Prepare for Monsoon in Cox’s Bazar Camps

Posted on by
Reply

Rohingya refugees and local people in Teknaf, a southern sub-district of Cox’s Bazar, are racing to prepare for monsoon rains forecast to start as early as this week. IOM, the UN Migration Agency, has been supporting efforts to prepare the camps, which although smaller than the giant Ukhiya sub-district settlements of Kutupalong and Balukali, still house thousands of people, who face similar threats of flooding and landslides.

To date IOM has supported 24 quick impact projects in Teknaf under the umbrella of 20 Para Development Committees (PDCs) – community platforms, each comprised of six refugees and five locals. The projects include building bridges, access roads, steps, drains, and slope protection work that will enable communities to better weather the monsoon.

The projects are mainly located in the densely populated Unchiprang, Leda Makeshift Settlement, Nayapara and Shamlapur camps. Over 21,310 people live in Unchiprang, 9,320 in Leda, 24,790 in Nayapara and 22,700 in Shamlapur. In all, some 250,000 Rohingya refugees live outside the main Ukhiya camps.

“At present, the most critical issue for both the Rohingya refugees and local people is to be safe from the rains,” said Maulavi Shaker, 35, a Rohingya member of a Teknaf PDC. “We’ve been working towards that, building roads and bridges so that our area won’t get cut off if there is flooding,” he added.

“Most refugees in Teknaf are living in shelters built only with plastic sheets and thin bamboos, which are highly vulnerable in the monsoon,” said Mohammad Helal Uddin, 35, another Teknaf member.

IOM and partner agencies recognize the risks posed by the flimsy structures in high winds and rain and have been racing to upgrade the shelters. In Teknaf over 15,000 shelters – covering over 78,000 people – have been identified as in need of upgrades, including plastic sheets, poles and guy ropes. IOM itself is targeting 13,204 shelters housing 66,020 refugees.

“The PDCs are helping our teams to identify workers and organizing cash for work in order to ensure that households living in flood-prone and landslide-prone areas get back-filling to elevate their shelter plots. We’re also constructing drainage to protect the shelters from run-off water, building embankments to prevent tidal surges and doing a number of slope protection works,” said Rafael Abis, IOM’s site management area coordinator. “The PDCs will also help IOM in the event of an evacuation – particularly if it involves those who are unable to evacuate themselves,” he added.

IOM has also helped the PDCs to establish Youth Safety and Security sub-committees within each of PDC to cope with possible emergencies such as flash floods, landslides, fires or conflicts. The sub-committee members have been trained to build the response capacity of their respective communities.

“Despite all the challenges that the Rohingya influx has created in Cox’s Bazar, the refugee and local communities have maintained a harmonious relationship throughout the crisis,” said John McCue, IOM Senior Operations Coordinator in Cox’s Bazar. “Representatives of both communities have come together to identify shared needs and solutions. The roads and bridges that they have constructed to provide access, particularly during the rainy season, is a significant example of communal harmony in this disaster-prone area,” he added.

India Signs Open Skies Pact With 6 Countries During ICAN 2016

Posted on by
Reply

On the sidelines of International Civil Aviation Negotiations (ICAN) – 2016 held recently in Nassau from 5th to 9thDecember, 2016, R.N. Choubey, Secretary, Civil Aviation said that India signed agreements with six nations on air aviation.

The Conference was attended by 106 countries out of ICAO membership of 191 countries. India held negotiations with 17 countries and “Memorandum of Understanding” was signed with 12 countries.   The major issues resolved at these negotiations as per the directions in National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP 2016) are:

  1. Increase in traffic rights:- India renegotiated traffic rights with Oman increasing the entitlements with 6,258 seats effective from Summer 2017 as the existing entitlements were nearly exhausted. The points of call remained unchanged.

India agreed with Saudi Arabia to increase the capacity by 8000 seats per week from IATA season when Indian carrier’s utilization reaches 80%. This was in response to the needs of increasing traffic between the two countries where Indian carriers have been utilising open sky in Damman to mount more flights than the Saudi Arabian side.

India also agreed with Ghana to increase the present allocation of 2 frequencies to 7 frequencies per week to encourage connectivity between the two countries.

  1. Open Skies agreement as per NCAP 2016 :- allows unlimited number of flights to six metro airports namely Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai, was signed with six countries namely Jamaica, Guyana, Czech Republic, Finland, Spain and Sri Lanka. The new arrangement will encourage connectivity and passenger travel between India and these countries.
  2. New Air Service Agreements were signed with Jamaica and Guyana.
  3. Code Shares:- In the present scenario code shares provide seamless connectivity to the travelling passengers and make possible connectivity between far off destinations not served by direct flights.  As per NCAP 2016 code shares are to be encouraged and keeping this in view, negotiations were completed with 9 countries to enable the legal framework between the governments of these countries to make possible code shares between the airlines of two sides. The negotiations have  enabled domestic code shares with Czech Republic, Portugal and Malaysia, domestic and international code shares including third country airlines with Guyana, removal of restriction of counting of capacity in case of code share with 3rd country carriers and domestic code  share to additional two points to Mauritius, code share with 3rd country carriers and 4 additional domestic code share points with Saudi Arabia and Spain and code share with 3rd country carriers with Sri Lanka.
  4. Resolution of other issues relating to Air Services Agreement was also completed with Ghana, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Portugal, Hong Kong, Ethiopia and Bangladesh.