In an address to the nation on the eve of country’s victory day, Honourable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina placed a new vision before countrymen, transforming her country into a smart one by 2041, and sought for cooperation from all in her pursuit to make her dream a reality. “Crisis will come. Getting afraid of a crisis is not right. We have successfully faced the coronavirus pandemic with the help of the people. InshaAllah, we will also overcome the global recession. We are seeking cooperation from you for that,” she added. Also issuing a word of caution, the Bangladesh premier alerted her people of conspirators who still remained hell bent on altering the course of national progress. In her 23 minutes speech, the premier also stressed on collective efforts in her pursuit to transform her nation to next step, following successful completion of her earlier pledge of building a Digital Bangladesh, a milestone that already saw extension of digital centers at grassroots with many public services taken at doorsteps in rural areas, let alone thousands of freelancers were developed who are now making their earnings through freelancing.

Braving global headwinds, Bangladesh’s economy has revived from setback as major indicators – export, remittance and private sector credit flow saw upward trend in the first two months of the current fiscal year. Bangladeshi companies exported goods and services worth $3.98 billion in the first month of the current fiscal year 2022-23, according to Export Promotion Burro (EPB) data. Moreover, the remittance inflow increased by $2.04 billion, around 12.06 percent higher year-on-year. Economists see the upward trend in major indicators as positive trend, a sign reflective of judicious leadership put in display by Honourable Prime Minister (HPM) Sheikh Hasina that led her country to rise in terms of all top human development indices also, turning the youngest nation in South Asia into a role model for inclusive development to be emulated for all emerging countries.

UN Resident Coordinator, Gwyn Lewis, has said that Bangladesh's achievements in human development and disaster response, long before it became a middle-income country, made it an example for other countries to emulate. In a message congratulating Bangladesh on the 51st anniversary of the victory, she said the country has been on an extraordinary voyage from being a war and famine-ravaged newborn nation, to its current standing as a UN member state standing at the threshold of LDC graduation, and providing shelter to nearly a million Rohingya refugees. She said Bangladesh too has contributed to shaping the UN's development agenda and peace operations globally. Bangladesh has also been a vocal advocate for multilateralism, climate justice and the interests of least developed countries. Bangladesh sponsored the Culture of Peace resolution that was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1999.

UNICEF has commended the memorandum of understanding signed between the Office of the Registrar General, Local Government Division, and the Directorate General of Health Services to accelerate universal birth registration in Bangladesh. Singing the agreement paves the way for an integrated approach where children will automatically have their birth registered, if they were not registered at birth, when they receive their first routine immunization. “Registration at birth is a fundamental right of every child. I applaud the government of Bangladesh for taking this essential and holistic initiative, which, once implemented, will benefit millions of children in Bangladesh,” said Sheldon Yett, UNICEF Representative to Bangladesh. A birth certificate is a critical stepping-stone towards claiming all other rights, including nationality, education, healthcare and protection

The victory of Bangladesh as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in the recent election for 2023-2025 is a vindication that Awami League government always emphasizes the security and protection of people's rights by continuing the legal battle against militancy, terrorism and drug abuse. This win comes for fourth times due to the government's commitment to protecting human rights nationally and internationally. The commitment has been reiterated by the concerned authorities recently to put an end to a politically-motivated propaganda through fabricated information about the human rights situation in Bangladesh by a certain quarter. The Awami League government under the able leadership of HPM Sheikh Hasina has been relentlessly working for the development of human resources by upholding the Constitution and emphasizing protecting the human rights of the country’s people.

HPM Sheikh Hasina, the longest serving prime minister in the history of Bangladesh who is currently serving her fourth term in office, has ranked at 42 on Forbes' annual list of the 100 most powerful women this year. She won her fourth term, which is also her third consecutive term, after Awami League secured majority votes in the last general election. She has rolled out plans to focus on issues such as food security and access to education and healthcare. The Forbes list of 2022 put Ursula von der Leyen, Honourable President of the European Commission, as the most powerful woman in the world while she was followed by European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and US Vice President Kamala Harris.

According to a report of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), the country’s rice production will reach 39.7 million tonnes by June next, lending further credence to HPM Sheikh Hasina’s earlier announcement on no impending food crisis for her country amid a global call for an impending food shortage. There was 3 million tonnes of Aus rice while there will be 16.3 million tonnes of Aman rice and the prediction of Boro production is 20.4 million tonnes. On the basis of the Aman yield in the past five years (2017 to 2021) considering weather elements (sunshine, solar radiation, temperature, relative humidity and cloud-free sky) and their effects on the yield, it can be seen that the Aman yield in 2022 will be 2.76 tonnes per hectare which is about 7% more than last year.

Building on a successful drive that saw over 70% of the population inoculated thanks to a free vaccination campaign as introduced by Honourable Prime Minister (HPM) Sheikh Hasina, efforts are underway to set in motion a special campaign for administering fourth Covid vaccine dose from December 20. People aged above 60, who already received their third Covid jab, will be vaccinated under this campaign, according to media reports. Besides, frontliners, pregnant women, immunocompromised people and citizens aged 18 and above suffering from chronic diseases will be given the vaccine during the campaign. Only Pfizer vaccine will be used in the campaign at all permanent vaccination centres across the country. The overwhelming accomplishment in the mass inoculation drive reflects strong and prudent leadership of HPM Sheikh Hasina as her country secured adequate supply of vaccine braving a global shortage.