Taking the NRBs onboard

The phrase associating non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) with national development process has been an archetype of a failed agenda. Thanks to home remittances coming anyway from Bangladeshi workers abroad we lost sight of the reservoir of knowledge, expertise, experience and money lying untapped with the wider Bangladeshi diaspora. This tremendous possibility came into focus in the just-concluded three-day NRB conference. It saw 18 seminars held on different issues confronting the expatriate community in terms of their investment in the national development process. We appreciate the initiative of the organisers in arranging such bridge building between the expatriate community and Bangladesh government. Although many expatriate groups couldn't participate and Bangladesh private sector could have played a hands-on role, the fact remains that the venture was a success. However flawed the meet goes down as a flagship marking a good start of the collaboration process. Such conference should not be one-off , instead it ought to be held biennially, if not more frequently, of course with wider representation from four corners of the world.
Of the plethora of suggestions emanating from the conference we have singled out four specific ones to endorse for immediate implementation. The need for coordinating agency in Bangladesh to promote and process investment proposals from expatriate individuals and groups can hardly be over-emphasised. Obviously, it has to be more dynamic than the expatriate welfare ministry which has worked too loosely between workers' welfare and expatriate investment. The administrative and regulatory constraints will have to be overcome by the agency.
Secondly, the proposal for financing demand-based vocational training institutes is an idea that we wholeheartedly support for their potential to meet the changing requirements of international labour market.
Thirdly, Innovation in Bangladesh Project by Anwarul Quadir Foundation which gave scholarship worth US dollar 25,000 every year to the best idea deserves to be replicated by others with possibly raising the monetary figure and increasing the number of recipients.
Finally, we are all for our expatriates to invest in bonds which can speed up their association with our development process. India has made a success of it.