Thursday, 23 March, 2023
Thursday, 23 March, 2023
Holy Ramadan begins on Friday
The holy month of Ramadan of 1444 Hijri will begin in the country on Friday (March 24) as the new moon was not sighted in the sky of Bangladesh today. The

Bangladesh cuts Hajj expenses, extends registration deadline for fifth time

At an exchange between AL's delegation  and Peter Haas, US Ambassador  to Dhaka over lunch earlier today

Bangladesh, Bhutan sign MoU on transit to strengthen trade ties

Working to ensure houses for all homeless people: PM Hasina

US Human Rights report made from biased sources: Hasan
Information and broadcasting minister Hasan Mahmud on Wednesday said the US Human Rights report has been made based on information from biased sources and it is one-sided. He said this while replying to journalists after a meeting with the leaders of Bangladesh Federal Union of Newspaper Press Workers and Bangladesh Newspaper Workers’ Federation at the ministry conference room at Secretariat in the capital. “They collected data from not a single source rather from several anti-government and biased sources. So, the report is one-sided. Definitely, we are not rejecting the entire report as some good points are there,” he said. But the issues, relating to Bangladesh’s human rights situation, elections and democracy, which were mentioned in the report are biased, he added. Hasan, also Awami League joint general secretary, said there are many questions over the US elections too. Donald Trump hasn’t accepted his defeat in the elections so far, he said. “Terrible incident like the attack in the US Capitol Hill by the supporters of Donald Trump never took place in our country. I think, before raising questions over our elections, the US should look into the questions raised about their own election system and the issues like Capitol Hill attack,” he said. “Now it is a matter to observe whether any other large country would publish report over the US Human Rights situation or election system in future,” he said. He further said, the US sometimes talks about extra-judicial killings in Bangladesh, whereas in the US 7,666 people were killed in police firing between 2013 and 2019, 996 people in 2020 and on an average 1000 people from 2021 to 2022. “Now it is a question whether the country, where on an average 1000 people are killed in police firing every year, has moral right to raise questions over other countries,” he said. “I am not saying that such incidents never take place in our country. But investigations are carried out into the incidents and punishments are also given after investigations,” he said. Earlier, during the view-exchange meeting, Newspaper Workers’ Federation President Matiur Rahman Talukder and Federal Union of Newspaper Press Workers President Md Alamgir Hossain Khan highlighted different issues of their workplaces. They also handed over to the minister a memorandum containing an 11-point demand, including Covid-19 period assistance for the members of the two organizations, imparting training to their members at Press Institute Bangladesh and establishing welfare fund. The minister assured them of considering the demands after examining those. Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s Joint Secretary Md Kawser Ahammed, Newspaper Workers’ Federation Vice-President Md Bazlur Rahman Milon, Secretary General Md Khairul Islam, Members Md Tanvir Hossain, Md Aminul Islam, Md Abdul Gafur, Md Rafiqul Islam, Habibullah, Md Shahadat Hossain, Abdul Kadir, Md Hamidur Rashid Khan, Abida Sultana and Federal Union of Newspaper Press Workers Vice-President Shamim Chowdhury, Secretary General Md Kamal Uddin, Members Md Razzaq Patwari, AHM Najmul Ahsan, Md Mostaq Ahmed, Tajammel Haque, Md Yusuf Ali, Md Abdul Mannan, Md Atiur Rahman, Md Liakat Ali and Selina Akhter Iti took part in the meeting.
Holy Ramadan begins on Friday
The holy month of Ramadan of 1444 Hijri will begin in the country on Friday (March 24) as the new moon was not sighted in the sky of Bangladesh today. The

Bangladesh cuts Hajj expenses, extends registration deadline for fifth time

At an exchange between AL's delegation  and Peter Haas, US Ambassador  to Dhaka over lunch earlier today

Bangladesh, Bhutan sign MoU on transit to strengthen trade ties

Working to ensure houses for all homeless people: PM Hasina

Seatrade Maritime to champion the next generation of professionals
Ships of 200-meter length and 10-meter draft can berth at Chittagong port
PM offers India to use Chattogram, Sylhet ports
European Commission launches net-zero industry act
Bangladesh plans to purchase new commercial aircraft from Airbus, a Netherlands-based multinational aerospace company, in order to bolster the fleet of Biman Bangladesh Airlines and thereby tap into the growing
Many companies in Bangladesh now offer group health insurance benefits to their employees in a bid to attract young talents, survive in the competition and comply with regulations, according to
The leaders of the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB) on Wednesday said that there would be no alternative for the government to generate internal resources to
Bangladesh has gradually turned into a major manufacturing hub for winter jackets as work orders are mainly shifting away from China due to higher production costs and a shortage of
Commerce minister Tipu Munshi on Sunday said traders have agreed to reduce the price of sugar by Tk 5 a kg from the first week of Ramadan. The minister made the
The project for the revival of muslin is to commence with the second phase from July. It aims to motivate and include the private sector in the revival of this
How far can the IMF loan promote clean energy?
A set of parallel initiatives need to be undertaken targeting the structural weaknesses of the gas sector and power sector development to ensure energy transition.
১ ঘণ্টা আগে
IMF approves nearly $3bn bailout for Sri Lanka
Budget FY 23-24: IMF conditions, inflation, polls 3 key issues
ADB to continue to stand beside Bangladesh: President Masatsugu

Myanmar: Concrete UN Security Council Action Needed

The United Nations Security Council should build on its December 2022 resolution on Myanmar by adopting tangible measures to hold the junta accountable for ongoing abuses, Human Rights Watch said. The council will hold a session on Myanmar on March 13, 2023, and hear reports from Noeleen Heyzer, the UN secretary-general’s special envoy on Myanmar, and Retno Marsudi, Indonesia’s foreign minister and head of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) office of the special envoy on Myanmar. Security Council members should consider the December resolution on Myanmar, which denounced the military’s rights violations since the February 1, 2021 coup, as only a first step to reinvigorate global scrutiny of the junta’s atrocities. The council should take meaningful actions under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, including instituting a global arms embargo, referring the country situation to the International Criminal Court, and imposing targeted sanctions on junta leadership and military-owned companies. “Myanmar’s junta has demonstrated it’s impervious to statements of condemnation or concern,” said Louis Charbonneau, UN director at Human Rights Watch. “Its disregard of the Security Council’s December resolution shows the need for a new resolution imposing strong measures like an arms embargo and targeted sanctions for senior military officials and companies linked to the military.” Since December, junta security forces have killed at least 263 people through artillery shelling, airstrikes, and arson attacks on villages, as well as torture, rape, and executions in custody, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). The authorities have arrested at least 486 people and sentenced at least 401 over the same period, including teachers, monks, doctors and nurses, lawyers, National League for Democracy (NLD) legislators and party officials, and aid workers. Most of the convictions have carried sentences of between 10 years to life in prison under “terrorism” or “incitement” provisions put in place or expanded by the junta to broadly criminalize the opposition movement. The junta has committed widespread and systematic abuses against the civilian population – including extrajudicial killings, torture, and wrongful imprisonment – that amount to crimes against humanity. Many attacks on civilians and villages are apparent war crimes. Since February 2021, security forces have killed more than 3,000 people and arbitrarily arrested over 20,000. In February, the junta extended its manufactured state of emergency for an additional six months before declaring martial law in 40 new townships across a number of states and regions, transferring all executive and judicial power to the head of the relevant regional military command. The December council resolution called for “full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access,” expressing deep concern at the “increasingly large numbers of internally displaced persons and dramatic increase in humanitarian need.” However, the Myanmar junta is increasing blockages on humanitarian assistance to prevent aid from reaching populations in need as a form of collective punishment. Since the resolution was adopted, military operations in the southeast and northwest have displaced more than 150,000 civilians, bringing the total number of people displaced since the coup to 1.3 million. Armed clashes have affected almost 80 percent of the country’s townships. The December resolution contained numerous references to ASEAN, which adopted a “five-point consensus” in April 2021 in response to the Myanmar coup. Junta chief Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing has since rejected each point of the consensus while exploiting the international community’s deference to the regional bloc. As this year’s ASEAN chair, Indonesia should reroute the bloc’s approach to more effectively isolate the Myanmar junta while soliciting ASEAN support for additional Security Council measures and cooperation with other countries’ efforts to block the flow of revenue and arms to the junta. “The generals have embarked on a scorched earth policy in an attempt to stamp out opposition,” Volker Türk, the UN high commissioner for human rights, reported earlier this month. “The military, emboldened by continuous and absolute impunity, has consistently shown disregard for international obligations and principles. Urgent, concrete action is needed to end this festering catastrophe.” Security Council members, in light of the junta’s flagrant noncompliance with the ASEAN five-point consensus and December resolution, should use today’s session to identify concrete steps to counter the grave abuses and violations of international human rights and humanitarian law being inflicted daily. “The UN special envoy and Indonesian foreign minister should make clear to Security Council members that the junta’s killings, torture, unlawful arrests, and war crimes demand more targeted action,” Charbonneau said. “Cutting off the junta’s supply of money and weapons is a critical next step to stanch the atrocities being carried out every day in the country.”  

BRAC International ED urges governments to scale effective anti-poverty programmes

BRAC International executive director Shameran Abed called upon governments and the international community to invest in evidence-based approaches at scale to get the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) back on track, at the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) in Doha. Abed, who was a lead discussant at the first High-level Thematic Roundtable of the conference, "Investing in people in least developed countries to leave no one behind,” co-chaired by Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, president of Malawi, and Andrzej Duda, president of Poland, spoke on the urgency and opportunity to renew commitment to the SDGs and the promise of leaving no one behind. Abed said that while interlocking crises like Covid-19, climate change and conflict may make the eradication of poverty seem more challenging than ever before, there are evidence-based programmes that can pull people out of extreme poverty successfully and sustainably, says a press release. He spoke about BRAC’s Ultra-Poor Graduation (UPG) approach, which combines big push investment in the poorest household with targeted wraparound services, as one such initiative, noting the extensive research demonstrating the programme’s effectiveness in addressing both social and economic vulnerabilities. “What we need to do is stop tinkering around the edges,” he stated, calling for greater global political will, action and investment to massively scale evidence-based initiatives to deliver on the promise made at the start of the Sustainable Development Goals. “Those living in the harshest forms of poverty demand nothing less of us,” he stressed. His comments followed a keynote address by Tarja Kaarina Halonen, former president of Finland, and remarks from panelists including Achim Steiner, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Victoria Kwakwa, vice president for Eastern and Southern Africa at the World Bank. Heads of governments, ministers and senior officials from 19 countries participated during the open debate at the Roundtable.

IMF team due in Dhaka to discuss financial sector reform

A team of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is expected to arrive in the capital this week to set the ball rolling on financial sector reform, as part of the $ 4.5 billion loan program agreed with the Bangladesh government, reports UNB. The IMF team will hold discussions with Bangladesh Bank, key personnel in the Finance Division, as well as officials at the Ministry of Forest, Environment and Climate Change – around $1.3 billion of the loan amount will be disbursed under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). The RSF is expected to provide affordable, long-term financing to support Bangladesh’s climate investment needs, catalyse climate financing, and reduce balance of payment pressures from import-intensive climate investment. During their stay here, the delegation would want to know updated information on different economic indicators with a view to releasing the next installment of the loan for Bangladesh, sources at Bangladesh Bank told the news agency. The central bank is implementing different policy reforms including on reserves, foreign exchange rate, monetary policy, loan recovery, interest rate, and GDP and inflation issues. Among the proposed reforms is to let the currency float against the US dollar – it remains to be seen just how far the central bank will ultimately go on this. The proposals also include allowing the private sector to import fuel, and increasing electricity prices at the retail level. Besides, a long-term plan will be made to make the prices of imported goods, including energy products, use-based and to increase the tax-GDP ratio. A decision has already been taken from the highest level of the government regarding the implementation of these measures, the official said.  
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Bangladesh looking to stay competitive after LDC graduation
Project launched to build inclusive skill system for women
BGMEA to go all out for post-LDC duty benefit
UN nuclear chief says Ukraine plant situation 'remains perilous'
UN investigators say no findings yet of genocide within Ukraine
Whole of society approach needed for combatting violent extremism
UN in Bangladesh marks International Women’s Day and launches social media campaign
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stresses the importance of having women's contribution in technology and innovation
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and partners are calling on the international community to redouble efforts for sustained financial support
The United Nations announced yesterday that it had taken a significant step towards trying to fill a key gap in
BIMSTEC countries to work together to realize potentials of the region                                                                                        - Foreign Minister
          The Nineteenth BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting (MM) was held in Bangkok today in virtual mode. Delegations from all the Member States of BIMSTEC joined the
০৯ মার্চ, ২০২৩
Bangladesh’s Golam Sarwar likely to become next SAARC secretary
Williamson, Latham punish fumbling Pakistan
ADB approves $230m loan for Bangladesh flood rehabilitation
Bangladesh welcomes Ajay Banga as the new President-designate of the World Bank Group
World Bank Managing Director Reiterates Strong Support to Bangladesh
‘Dhaka studying US Indo-Pacific Strategy’
Williamson, Latham punish fumbling Pakistan

Japan coach Moriyasu staying on after WC

Hunger-striking Senegal journalist shifted to hospital

PM opens 1st phase of metro rail today

10 killed, 30 injured in hotel-casino fire on Cambodian border

Bangladesh maintains close ties with all – China, US and India: PM tells CNN

Williamson, Latham punish fumbling Pakistan

Japan coach Moriyasu staying on after WC

Hunger-striking Senegal journalist shifted to hospital

PM opens 1st phase of metro rail today

Williamson, Latham punish fumbling Pakistan

Japan coach Moriyasu staying on after WC

Hunger-striking Senegal journalist shifted to hospital

PM opens 1st phase of metro rail today

10 killed, 30 injured in hotel-casino fire on Cambodian border