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Oct 26, 2020 NEWSLETTER |
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Bangladesh tops in per capita GDP among South Asian countries: IMF Bangladesh's per capita GDP is on track to surpass India's in 2020-21, according to the International Monetary Fund. In the latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF forecasts a 4% growth in Bangladesh's per capita GDP in 2020 to $1,888. Bangladeshis appear to be the fourth richest citizens in South Asia in terms of per capita GDP while the Maldives has the highest $12,464 in the region. According to media reports, Bangladesh fared well as almost all major drivers of the growth such as agriculture, export and remittance have performed better in recent times, owing to a raft or measures put in place by the government, under the able leadership of Honourable Prime Minister (HPM) Sheikh Hasina, leading to this achievement. |
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Global Hunger Index: Bangladesh leads South Asia in reducing hunger 
Bangladesh has gained 13 places to rank 75th out of 107 qualifying countries on the latest Global Hunger Index, well ahead of neighbouring India. GHI scores are based on the values of four component indicators: undernourishment (share of the population with insufficient caloric intake), child wasting (share of children under-five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition), child stunting (share of children under-five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition), and child mortality. According to the index, Bangladesh has made significant inroads in curbing child stunting, with the rate dropping by 12.8% points between 2012 and 2020. |
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Bangladesh’s forex reserves top $40bn on remittance inflow 
Bangladesh’s foreign currency reserves have crossed $40 billion for the first time, thanks to a steady flow of inward remittances despite the coronavirus pandemic. According to media reports, the reserves at the central bank, stood at $40.1 billion this week, are sufficient to pay more than 10 months of import bills. Bangladeshi expatriates clocked a new record in remittance by sending over $6.71 billion in the July-September period in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The amount is 48.57% more than the money received in the same period last year. In September alone, the expatriates remitted more than $2.15 billion, the second highest in a month after $2.6 billion in July. |
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Bangladesh marks encouraging recovery rate from Covid 19 
The number of patients who have been cured of Covid has reached 3,00,000 in Bangladesh since the pandemic outbreak in March. According to media reports, over 3,00,000 people have recovered from the disease, which is 77.89% of the infected population. Over the span of last six months, treatment protocol has been developed, and the government has focused on improving logistics at public hospitals across the country. As a result, according to media reports, at the directives from HPM Sheikh Hasina, the number of hospital bed has been increased by many fold while treatment has become accessible for people with critical symptoms of the Covid-19, alongside, a good number of intensive care units has been set up and testing facilities were raised too. |
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With the promise of a better life, Bhasan Char awaits Rohingya refugees 
A portion of the over 1 million Rohingya refugees, who have fled death and persecution in Myanmar's volatile Rakhine State and took refuge in Cox's Bazar, will find a temporary abode in Bhasan Char. The government has spent over Tk 30 billion on providing shelter on the island to more than 100,000 refugees along with access to amenities such as cooking facilities, electricity, water and sewerage systems, playgrounds and cyclone shelters. The housing project in Bhasan Char, named Asrayan-3, is primarily based on the concept of cluster villages comprising houses and shelter stations which have been constructed with concrete blocks and stand four feet above ground level. Each cluster village consists of 12 houses, each with 16 rooms. Each room is capable of accomodating four people. |
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US sees real potential to deepen ties with Bangladesh, thanks Bangladesh for protective equipment 
The United States wants to deepen its ties across South Asia, particularly with Bangladesh and India, as it sees real potential to have stronger relations. "We are at a moment of real potential in the opportunity to deepen our relations across South Asia, but with these two partners in particular – India and Bangladesh," US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun said. The diplomat, who recently concluded a three-day trip to Dhaka, remarked admirably about his experience in a special telephone briefing by the State Department held on 20 October. Moreover, he also thanked the government of Bangladesh for its tremendous efforts to ramp up production of personal protective equipment and deliver those to the US during the early stages of the COVID-I9 pandemic before they really could get their feet underneath. |
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BANGLADESH AWAMI LEAGUE |
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