Simplistically put, it is a “procedure vs patient” issue—meaning a “bureaucracy vs ultimate beneficiary” tussle. We, of course, need procedures to work within, otherwise systems would collapse.

In the first 10 months of the outgoing fiscal year, Tk 14,459.40 crore of undisclosed wealth was legalised in the country—as reported by The Daily Star citing data from the National Board of Revenue (NBR)—which, the government says, will play a big role in kick-starting the economy by injecting cash flow amidst the pandemic-induced financial struggles.

In past weeks, there have been a number of significant events which may seem unconnected but are actually deeply connected in terms of whether the world is able to successfully come out of the current Covid-19 pandemic and also deal with the looming catastrophe of climate change.

What makes a successful year for a business? The traditional way we define business success is through financials. With public companies, each quarter we receive an update, as well as an annual update. This tells us about revenues and profits as well as dividends payable to shareholders.

In the year of Bangladesh’s golden jubilee, the finance minister has presented the 50th budget of Bangladesh for fiscal year (FY) 2022.

At a preparatory meeting for ULAB’s planned virtual convocation, I suggested that we use the iconic image of Keanu Reeves dodging many bullets in the Matrix trilogy as our promotional campaign.

As another proposed national budget (of Tk 603,681 crore) has been placed in the parliament amidst a global pandemic, the biggest concern for the government and all other stakeholders is how well it can be implemented, as there are many new challenges to tackle. The aspirations of the budget—especially the economic growth target of 7 percent—are already being viewed by many as ambitious, and we must keep in mind that the budget will not yield a positive result for the nation unless the government takes immediate measures to ensure its adequate and timely implementation.

It can be said without any fear of contradiction that one of history’s most massive displacements of population with the attendant violence and misery took place when,

The leaders of the G7 countries—consisting of the US, UK, Canada, Japan, Italy, France and Germany—will be holding their annual meeting in the UK in the second week of June and have a number of major issues on their agenda, including how to roll out global vaccination against the coronavirus and how to tackle climate change.

In a historic move, the Irish parliament has passed a motion that condemns Israel’s “de facto annexation” of Palestinian territories, after the recent bombardment of Gaza by Israel. Ireland has become the first EU member state to pass such a motion.

Bangladesh apparel industry stands at a critical juncture. The industry has achieved significant improvements in safety and is making steady strides in sustainability.

Public health has never been a priority sector for the government of Bangladesh when it comes to budget allocation.

The Daily Star newspaper recently announced on its front page, “COVID Vaccines. One Lakh Pfizer Shots to Arrive Next Month” (May 19, 2021).

On May 19, the finance minister said, “The scope [to whiten black money] will be there as long as undisclosed incomes will be there.” (The Daily Star) Before commenting on this statement, let’s take a step back and think how we got to this point.

During the latest rerun of the biblical David and Goliath narrative in a changed context, the age-old conflict between the Israelites and the Philistines has come alive.

What is the picture that flashes through your mind when someone talks of social classes? A reader of The Guardian newspaper once made an interesting albeit highly generalised observation.

Expatriate workers are our goose of Aesop’s Fables that lays the golden eggs.

The complainant is now complained against.

It is not easy to rationalise some of the recent actions of the government related to the realm of governance, in other words, related to us the people. For now, let us address the second wave of the pandemic and the government’s actions or reactions to deal with it.

May 21, 2021, Friday, 2 AM Israeli local time: an Egypt-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect, ending the recent 11-day Israeli bombardment of Gaza. All told, the attack on the besieged Palestinian strip claimed the lives of 248 Palestinians, including 66 children.