Yunus for a fresh vision for Bangladesh’s future

"The exclusion of the poor from the financial system is one of the most powerful tools of disempowerment in our time. When people do not have access to capital, they cannot dream, they cannot build, and they cannot participate in shaping their own futures."

— Prof Muhammad Yunus

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus yesterday said Bangladesh now stands at a turning point to forge a new social contract in which financial inclusion and the empowerment of marginalised communities become integral.

In the new social contract, the state and its people, especially its youth, co-create a future rooted in inclusion, tradition, justice, dignity, and opportunity, he said in his keynote speech at Earthna Summit 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Earthna Centre for a Sustainable Future (Earthna), a member of Qatar Foundation, is organising the second edition of the summit.

Over 1,000 participants from 100 plus countries, including global policymakers, thought leaders, academics, and businesses are attending the summit.

"We want to stand as a beacon of hope for the world and invite our friends and partners to rewrite inclusive social contracts and to explore the role of social business, financial inclusion, and microfinance in fostering sustainable development and economic opportunities for the marginalised," the Nobel laureate said.

Prof Yunus said financial inclusion is not a matter of charity, but justice.

"The exclusion of the poor from the financial system is one of the most powerful tools of disempowerment in our time. When people don't have access to capital, they cannot dream, they cannot build, and they cannot participate in shaping their own futures."

He said poverty is not created by poor people, but a consequence of an economic system where resources surge upwards, concentrating wealth ever more narrowly. Social business armed with the power of financial inclusion can remove this trap and can move millions out of poverty.

On Bangladesh's July 2024 uprising, he said what began as a protest against discrimination evolved into a nationwide call for justice, good governance, and accountability.

It was a generational cry for dignity, transparency, and inclusive governance that listen to the needs and demands of everyone, particularly, the marginalised people, he said.

Prof Yunus called on all to be bold to build a world where no one is too poor to dream and no dream is too big to achieve. "The challenges before us are significant."

"But so too is our capacity for innovation, compassion, and collective action."

Prof Yunus said that intensifying of climate crisis and dwindling funding for tackling it are creating an existential threat for all of us, but self-destructive values like limitless consumption and profit maximization continue.

He said safety of the environment demands a new way of living that is based on the principles of zero net carbon emissions, zero wealth concentration through the creation of social businesses, and zero unemployment by becoming entrepreneurs.

"We live in a time of profound uncertainty, where multilateralism is under serious threat, climate change is accelerating, geopolitical tensions are rising, and humanitarian crises are deepening."

Prof Yunus said that in today's crisis-prone world, wars and conflicts erode rights and disrupt economies. Peace and stability are fundamental prerequisites for any meaningful and sustainable development.

"The world must not ignore the humanitarian crises that affect people from Palestine to the Rohingyas in Bangladesh," he said.

He said the protracted crisis in Myanmar continues to threaten regional stability. For years, Bangladesh has hosted over 1.2 million Rohingya refugees.

While global efforts continue, world leaders must come together to ensure the safe, sustainable and dignified repatriation of the Rohingyas to their homes in Myanmar, he added.

The chief adviser reached in Doha on April 21 on a four-day visit and received a warm welcome from Qatari ministers and dignitaries as he attended the opening ceremony of the Earthna Summit yesterday.

BANGLADESHI SOLDIERS

Qatar will recruit 725 Bangladeshi soldiers to serve in various capacities, said Shafiqul Alam, the chief adviser's press secretary.

Speaking to UNB in Doha, he said the recruitment process will begin within the next two months.

Shafiqul said Bangladeshi soldiers have long been deployed in Kuwait, and Qatar now seeks to engage them in a similar manner on a regular basis.

"Qatar will hire 725 soldiers every three years, but we are working to increase that number," he added.

Shafiqul said there will be an investment summit on April 23 and Prof Yunus will also speak at a conference on the Rohingya issue where global stakeholders will join.

Meanwhile, Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, Qatar minister of state for energy affairs, yesterday called on Prof Yunus on the sidelines of the summit.

Earlier in the day, the chief adviser held a meeting with Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, mother of the Qatar Amir and chairperson of Qatar Foundation, on the sidelines. He also met Sheikh Thani bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, chairperson of Qatar Fund for Development.

Besides, Prof Yunus held a meeting with Nawaf Abdullah Al Hammadi, assistant CEO for International Operations Sector of Qatar Charity, said his Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder.