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From compliance to competitiveness: Bangladesh’s readiness for ESPR in EU market
EU’s Eco-design and Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) entered into force from July 2024, as a part of the package of measures for transition to circular economy. EU besets their environmental and climate goals, circularity and energy efficiency targets by 2030. For specific products, such as textiles and steel ESPR will be implementable from 2026. ESPR contains a number of new measures of which digital product passport (DPP), rules to address destruction of unsold consumer goods, green public procurement etc. For transformation process from compliance to competitiveness government ownership and private sector earnestness is imperative.
A Policy Fallacy Rooted in Over-Licensing and Weak Oversight
Bangladesh, with a GDP of around USD 460 billion in 2025, has one of the most over-licensed financial sectors in South Asia. It currently hosts 61 scheduled banks, 38 non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs), over 750 licensed microfinance institutions (MFIs), alongside 13 mobile financial service (MFS) providers, 9 payment service providers (PSPs), and 12 payment system operators (PSOs). These institutions are regulated by four bodies: Bangladesh Bank (BB), the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA), the Microcredit Regulatory Authority (MRA), and the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC). Yet financial inclusion remains suboptimal. A substantial segment of the population, including many in urban areas, remains excluded from formal financial services.
Reciprocal Tariff by USA - its Impact on Bangladesh Economy
The announcement of Reciprocal Tariff (RT) on April 2, 2025 on 108 countries ranging from 11-49% by the president Donald Trump has shaken the world irrespective of size of the economy and the amount of trade deficit USA is running with the concerned countries. The trade deficit of US was USD 918.4 billion in 2024, total US exports with the rest of the world is USD 3.12 trillion and total imports were USD 4.11 trillion as per the available information. US constantly enjoying surplus in services export, which was USD 1.15 trillion, and import was 0.841 trillion in 2024. USA did not mention services export issues anywhere whereas services export throughout the world is growing and will dominate the future trade.
Legal framework of banking sector must be reformed
On June 4, Bangladesh Bank informed the chairmen and managing directors of five Shariah-based banks in a special meeting that it intends to merge them into a single, stronger Islamic bank. The five banks in question are First Security Islami Bank, Global Islami Bank, Union Bank, Social Islami Bank, and EXIM Bank. It is worth noting that toward the end of the last Awami League government’s tenure, an initial attempt was made to merge EXIM Bank with Padma Bank to form a new entity, but that initiative was halted due to political changes.
China-India rapprochement, Trump’s concerns, and the geopolitical equation in South Asia
By 2025, international politics has reached a turning point where "strategic distrust" is giving rise to new forms of "temporary alliances." Despite their historical rivalry, the recent closeness between China and India, India’s role in U.S. domestic politics, and the strategic importance of Bangladesh’s location in South Asia are all contributing to increasingly complex geopolitical equations. After the bitter relations following the 2020 Galwan Valley clashes, recent developments like the BRICS summit, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meetings, and bilateral border negotiations have transformed China-India relations into a form of “calculated coexistence.”
Deficits and tariffs: Trump confusions and what can be done about them
The US has a persistent trade deficit with Sri Lanka. Despite almost universal agreement among economists that trade deficits, especially between two countries, are not meaningful, President Trump believes otherwise. As he assumed office, he asked his officials to “investigate and remedy” persistent US trade deficits. Sri Lanka-US trade shows a deficit of USD 2.6 billion following an increase of 6.3 percent in 2024. Sri Lanka was responsible for 0.28 percent of the total US trade deficit. Even if it were eliminated, there would be no discernible impact on the total.
Contractionary monetary policy alone can’t solve inflation woes
The Bangladesh Bank announced the second monetary policy of the current fiscal year on February 10, 2025. This was the second monetary policy for the fiscal year 2024-25 and the first policy under the interim government. There was considerable anticipation regarding the announced policy, and many experts had expected it to be contractionary in nature. Indeed, the policy can be described as contractionary in terms of its characteristics, as it focuses more on controlling the existing high inflation rather than achieving high growth.
End uncertainty around Rooppur Nuclear project
Most of the mega-projects undertaken during the previous Awami League government have now become a burden. Even after some projects have been completed, they are not yielding the expected benefits. For instance, the Karnaphuli Tunnel. Additionally, for many of the mega-projects, the government cannot predict when they will be completed. One such expensive project is the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
Excessive foreign debt erodes financial independence
In the 1970s, an American development economist visited Bangladesh. At one point, he gave a speech to the faculty members of Dhaka University. The economics department’s professors were notably present at this event. During his address, the American economist presented his views on why Bangladesh’s economic development was not progressing to the desired level. The professors in attendance listened intently to his words. At that moment, a young economics professor from Dhaka University stood up and said to the American economist, "The reason we are unable to achieve the desired level of development is because you are intervening in our economy in various ways." After a brief pause, the American economist replied to the young professor, saying, "If 80 percent of the funds for your country's development activities come from us, whose economy is it? If you were able to finance your development from domestic sources, we would not need to offer any advice." Hearing this, the young professor remained silent and sat down.
Lessons from Bangladesh’s tussle with Adani Power
“Did you hear that Adani is refusing to supply Bangladesh with electricity?” a friend asked me recently. I knew it was a loaded question, my friend being a nationalist. “You recall wehad no power because we couldn’t pay for shiploads of fuel and coal just a few years back?” I asked back.