Mega projects will play a positive role in economic development of the country’s infrastructure development. However, if these projects can encourage more export-oriented FDI, it will be great for the economy. It should also be ensured that the loans taken for these projects can be repaid from the money raised from these projects. This was stated by economist Wahiduddin Mahmud in a speech on Friday (3 December), the last day of the annual conference of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).
Wahiduddin Mahmud said, “We need to take immediate action on how we can sustain our economic development in the post-LDC period. At the same time, we must be ready to compete with the world after the passing of LDC. Governments often make the mistake of relying on businessmen which causes inconveniences in the long run. Therefore, the government has no choice but to prepare for the future competition.”
Another session on the last day of the three-day annual conference of BIDS highlighted the loss of small and informally run businesses due to online business. The state of gender equality in the development of the country was highlighted in the lecture titled ‘Is Bangladesh a Gender in Development Success Story’. Apart from this, various aspects of the development of the agricultural sector of Bangladesh came up in the discussion titled ‘Toward a Revised Understanding of Agrarian Bangladesh’. The three-day annual conference of BIDS presents research reports on various issues including traffic congestion, urbanization, the impact of e-commerce, women empowerment, security.
