A seminar on ‘Economic Development of Bangladesh’ was held on October 25, 2016, at Markuli Hall of BRACU Savar Campus. Rehan Ahmed, Campus Superindendent, introduced the guest speaker Professor Syed M. Hashemi, a renowned development practitioner and former Chair and Professor of Department of Economics and Social Sciences, BRAC University. He is also the Founder-Director of BRAC Development Institute, BRAC University. The purpose of the session was to inform students about the economic development in Bangladesh that took place over the decades.
Prof. Hashemi started the session by taking students’ ideas about the problems and developments of Bangladesh. He mentioned that in spite of political violence, corrupt political practices, lack of broader consensus and lack of strong social democratic voice, Bangladesh has made major advances. There are fundamental changes in poverty reduction and women empowerment that we should acknowledge and appreciate. With some graphical representation, he showed the improvement of Bangladesh in fulfilling the targets of some of the United Nations MDGs (Millennium Development Goals). Moreover, Bangladesh has a steady inflation rate and one of the best safety net programmes in the world. Prof. Hashemi also had a discussion on the successful TUP (targeting ultra poor) programme by Brac, which has been replicated by a number of developing countries. He talked about satisfactory food security, but he also showed concern regarding the high rate of stunting.
At the end of the seminar, he took a review of the session from the students and motivated them to think further for the development of the country apart from achieving a good CGPA. He also answered questions in certain intervals. Overall, it was an interactive session and students participated enthusiastically. Later, Mr. Rehan’s concluding remarks re-emphasized on the student’s role as an active citizen. The seminar ended with a vote of thanks to the guest speaker.