Round tables

The challenges faced by women-led SMEs and the way forward

The SMEs operating in Bangladesh are important contributors to the economy’s booming sectors including industry, service and manufacturing.

Construction Hazard: Creating awareness and the role of stakeholders

Prospect of Digital Platforms in Getting Service-Related Information and Providing Feedback

Triggering digital transformation: Reducing operating cost and expanding customer base

Realizing population goals: Translating strategies to actions

The business partner of the future

Use and misuse of defamation law and its impact on journalism

Enabling fruits and vegetable export to improve farm income

Bangladesh has already achieved food security in staple crops like rice, potatoes, and vegetables. Bangladesh is the third largest growing vegetable producer and the tenth largest tropical fruit producer in the world.
South Asia in a changing world

South Asia is a critical link to the rise of Asia and its position in the international system. With a population of 1.8 billion people, it houses one fourth of the global humanity.
Alternative Credit Scoring: Collaterising Data for MSE Financing

The Business Finance for the Poor in Bangladesh (BFP-B) is a 25 million-pound programme to increase access to finance for micro and small enterprises. BFP-B has assisted financial sector regulators to develop regulation and common industry infrastructure that make
A roadmap for sustainable solution to the Rohingya crisis

The Daily Star in association with North South University (NSU) organised a roundtable titled “A roadmap for sustainable solution to the Rohingya crisis” on September 24, 2019. Here we publish a summary of the discussion.
Patterns and effects of climate change in the north-west Bangladesh and its policy implications

Bangladesh is one of the worst sufferers of climate change. The north-west part of Bangladesh has improved a lot in the last few years in terms of both poverty and employment but the adverse impacts of climate change are putting our progress at risk.
Affordable homes for all

A comprehensive policy taking into account the interests of landowners, builders, financiers and prospective homeowners can give a boost to the housing sector and enable more people to own homes, said industry players and financiers yesterday.
Bangladesh as the next destination: Deepening economic ties with Japan

Japan has been a trustworthy and dependable friend since the birth of Bangladesh. It gives Bangladesh immense pride and confidence
Creating blended finance architecture for catalysing impact investment in Bangladesh

Over the last four years, BFP-B has made three investments in Alternative Investment Vehicles (AIV). We did this to find an alternative
Role of family and religious values in preventing violent extremism

It’s been quite some time now since we have noticed the rise of militancy and violent extremism in the country. The Holey Artisan
Realising the unfinished agenda of ICPD in Bangladesh

The 25th anniversary of the ICPD (International Conference on Population and Development) is a momentous occasion to assess what Bangladesh has done so far and what we need to do for the future regarding population issues. It seems that earlier, we were very intense on population
Belt and Road Initiative: Perspective from Bangladesh

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a major undertaking. In the words of President Xi Jinping “This is the project of the century”. It
Win back trust to thrive

Bangladesh’s financial sector is suffering from a crisis of trust among savers in the face of continued governance failure, said top
Skills strategies for jobs

A central focus of BYLC’s work over the past decade has been in instilling values of public service in youth and equipping them with leadership skills. After having trained more than 4,000 youth, another major strand of our work now is in ensuring livelihood for them.
People’s participation, democracy and local governance: Features of democracy in Switzerland and Bangladesh

Democracy is under a lot of pressure globally.
Way to Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Sector Wide Approach (SWAp): Opportunities and Challenges

The topic of discussion today is technical and vocational education. We would like to talk about how development partners, private
Promoting eco-friendly production process in the RMG sector

The key question of today’s discussion is how we can sustain the growth of the RMG sector and yet protect our natural resources. We are most concerned about water. The Daily Star has written umpteen times about pollution of water sources due to inefficient management of industrial wastes.
The Security Implications of Climate Change

Bangladesh is identified as one of the most vulnerable countries to the impact of climate change. Every aspect of our life will be
Weather index-based insurance for mitigating agricultural risks in Bangladesh

Weather index-based insurance is one of BFP-B’s 30 live innovation-investments in Bangladesh. We do rigorous impact assessments
Women's Football : Success, challenges and impact beyond the pitch

[Hasanuzzaman Khan] Bablu bhai asked me in 2001 to form a team from BJMC to play an exhibition match -- the first ever by a Bangladesh women’s team -- against a West Bengal side. We lost and it hurt when we conceded goals, but I knew that I was a part of Bangladesh football history.
Achieving sustainable development through entrepreneurship and innovation

My diverse job experiences have helped me to work towards entrepreneurship and women's empowerment. Bangladesh is on the way
Indo-Pacific Strategy: Implications for the Region

The Daily Star and Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS) jointly organised a roundtable titled “Indo-Pacific Strategy: Implications for the Region” on March 04, 2019. Here we publish a summary of the discussion.
Gender-based Violence in Development and Humanitarian Settings

Gender Based Violence (GBV) is not uncommon in humanitarian settings or humanitarian emergencies, i.e. armed conflicts or natural
Election Manifesto of the Political Parties and Right to Food Act

Prior to our national election, we would like to draw the attention of our political parties to include the demand for the enactment of the Right to Food Act in their election manifestos.
Recognition of Women's Unaccounted Work

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, which begins on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25 and ends on International Human Rights Day on December 10, is a time to galvanise action to end violence against women and girls around the world.
Pneumonia: The forgotten killer of children

The Government is providing routine immunisation services across the country, and the country is having consistently good coverage of vaccines.
Public-Private Partnership in Technical and Vocational Education and Training to Promote Industry Relevant Skills

Bangladesh is doing quite well in terms of general education but we are lagging behind in skills development.
Digitalization for Life

We all would agree that digital disruption has been impacting almost all our businesses with different levels of intensity. Smartphones and social media have also been driving prominent changes in consumer behaviors.
Safe Spaces for Youth

An interactive and lively discussion, on the importance of creating safe spaces for youth in Bangladesh, took place at the roundtable jointly organised by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and The Daily Star on the occasion of International Youth Day 2018.
Closing the Gaps for a Better Work Environment

Bangladesh has witnessed its best times in terms of economic growth in the last decade or so. Now is the most opportune moment to amplify its growth by efficiently focusing on the skills gaps prevailing at different areas.
Building Payment Ecosystem for Digital Bangladesh

The Daily Star and Association of Bankers, Bangladesh (ABB) organised a roundtable titled “Building payment ecosystem for digital Bangladesh: Challenges and opportunities” on July 30, 2018. Here we publish a summary of the discussion.