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June 26, 2014 |
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DIGITAL BANGLADESH
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Bangladesh has launched the world's largest public web portal opening up a unique window to ensure transparency and accountability in governance. The web portal containing 25,043 websites of government organizations started its journey on June 23. Information technology expert and prime minister’s adviser on ICT Sajeeb Wazed Joy formally inaugurated ‘ The National Web Portal’ at a function at the Prime Minister’s Office.
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Skype Co-founder Morten Lund finds Bangladesh a potential field for flourishing information technology business. He observes that a large number of youth are highly positive and keenly interested to work with technology. He predicts a miraculous revolution on technology-based business in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s mobile phone subscribers exceeded 116 million at the end of May 2014. According to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), about three million new users subscribed in the first five months of this year 2014. Concurrently, the mobile industry bagged 1.77 million Internet users, while the total Internet users of the country stand at 38.9 million in May 2014.
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BANGLADESH ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE
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UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised Bangladesh, as the country has again emerged first for contributing the highest number of troops to the UN peacekeeping missions across the globe. During a meeting with Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid at the UN Headquarters in New York, he assured to continue their support in Bangladesh’s development. |
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Bangladesh's Mustafa Kamal became the 11th President of the International Cricket Council (ICC). He has been appointed at the Annual Conference of ICC held on June 26 in Melbourne.
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REGIONAL COOPERATION
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Visiting Health Minister of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena signed a deal with his Bangladesh counterpart Mohammed Nasim to import pharmaceuticals products. Sri Lanka had already given a list of ‘525 types of medicines’ that they want to source from Bangladesh. The Sri Lanka’s minister said they had turned to Bangladesh for the ‘ high-quality and low price’ of medicines. |
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Bhutan has shown interest to develop air communication and tourism with Bangladesh. Bhutanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Pema Choden said that Bhutanese tourists have huge attraction on the historical places of Bangladesh, particularly on the Buddhist sites.
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Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visits Bangladesh from June 25 to June 27 to discuss several bilateral issues. Her visit to Bangladesh may boost economic cooperation and intensify trade and investment further.
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SUSTAINABLE GROWTH
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To boost economic competitiveness, International Finance Corporation (IFC) reaffirmed the development financier's commitment towards creating momentum for rapid, inclusive, and sustained growth in Bangladesh. IFC has committed nearly $400 million for 12 projects for supporting natural-gas resources development, funding an independent power project and expanding trade finance and domestic private industry.
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Inflows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Bangladesh rose 24 percent year-on-year to 1.6 billion in 2013 despite being the political violence by BNP-Jamaat militants across the country. The World Investment Report of the UNCTAD, released on June 24, shows Bangladesh is placed as a second favoured investment destination in South Asia.
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INNOVATIONS
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Bangladesh government is going to replace half a million inefficient boilers in rice mills across the country under the Bangladesh Bank's loan-refinancing scheme for 'green energies'. The Power Division, German donor agency GIZ, and some commercial banks have teamed up with the central bank to plan, implement and execute the project. |
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Bangladesh scientists have innovated a new technology that will help cultivate underutilized land all year round in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) by reserving rainwater with building dams between the hills at a very low cost.
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