The myth of self-reliant Bangladesh

SINCE independence in 1971, many economic growth oriented development models in Bangladesh, which create both gross and net happiness for the elite, have not yet brought happiness for the broad majority. That is why it seems necessary to build a self-reliant social development model for Bangladesh. Self-reliant development must be measured and indicated on the basis of social proficiency and happiness, not only on economic efficiency and productivity.   

Among the prerequisites and aspects and prospects of development, population and resources; present and desired development structure; what value Bangladesh needs; and the status of Bangladesh within the new international economic order are very crucial for carrying out studies. Bangladesh has abundant human resources, both skilled and unskilled; good soil for agricultural raw materials, but not always favourable climatic conditions; no important minerals like ore and coal but natural gas and probably oil in the Bay of Bengal; primitive tools, farming and agriculture system; second grade technology and equipment in the few industries; worn out railways; insufficient road, inland and sea-borne transport system; an infant airways system; and unclear relations between public and private ownership in industry. These prerequisites -- both positive and negative, adequate and inadequate -- form the basis of territorial or decentralised planning, in which territorial needs form the goals of planning and the course of action.

What Bangladesh needs is a combination of self-help development process and ways for coordinating development. Self-help development means development by and for the people. Without a horizontal model and process of development with vertical complementation of necessary means, Bangladesh cannot realise the much needed balanced and equitable social development. Dependence of the population on land has increased more than dependence on other economic sectors, due to a higher rate of population growth in the rural than in the urban sector; a lower rate of growth in land reclamation and the addition of new land to agriculture; and a relatively lower rate of increase in agricultural and industrial productivity than in the population growth rate.

The term self-reliance was coined by Ralph Waldo Emerson in 1841, which stressed trust in one's own thoughts, skills and originality, and belief in one's own capabilities and genius. A famous quote from this essay is: “Envy is ignorance, imitation is suicide.” Translated to communities, this philosophical concept takes a slightly different path, emphasising the power of independence, creativity, originality and belief in strength and resilience. It also rejects the need for external support and glorifies the importance of self-application, e.g. tilling of the land to get the “kernel of nourishing corn” (Emerson, 1841).

Mahatma Gandhi expanded this concept to incorporate a simple lifestyle asserting that nature produced enough for our wants, and if only everybody took enough for him/herself and nothing more, there would be no people dying of starvation (Kripalani, 1965: 130). The contribution of Rabindranath Tagore as a social thinker was his pioneering experiments to promote collective grassroots initiatives in rural Bengal in the mid-20th century and his philosophy of the Human Being, and of national independence and development that anticipated later-day thinking on self-reliant, participatory development.

In 1971, Bangladesh had 75 million people and its per capita annual income was $100. In 43 years, its population has increased to 156 million and per capita income to $986. Since 1991, its average annual growth rate has improved at the rate to 5.4%. Irrespective of this achievement, the average income still remains at $1.90 per day. Bangladesh was a self-reliant country in the past in the sense that it depended entirely on the efforts of its own people, but the introduction of the Green Revolution in the 1960s caused a sharp change in its self-reliance stance. It introduced dependence on outside aid, which is a well-known phenomenon that slows down the path to sustainability. Schumacher (1973), for example, stressed that foreign aid is able to play only a limited role in bringing about sustained economic development.

A country that makes development plans which largely depend on the receipt of substantial foreign aid may do much damage to the spirit of self-respect and self-reliance of its people. Even in the narrowest economic terms, the loss is greater than the gains. Resources, particularly money, are not value free. They bring certain baggage with them, depending on their origin. They will not be available to you in the future, they have significant disadvantages that outweigh their advantages. Carmen (1996) also notes that development aid is tied to the power of money, and the power of money is identified with the right of interventions. Such interventions generally impact negatively on traditional systems within society, causing a breakdown of its integrity. Foreign funding does not build local support and supporters, and hampers promotion of self-reliance.

The concept of living in a state of self-reliant sustainability involves a natural, simple lifestyle with enough for basic needs. It does not encourage ill health, famine, illiteracy or inadequate living standards. Self-reliant living is a viable means of caring for nature and other human beings, and hence, for sustainability. The examples from Bangladesh show that there is opportunity for making changes and creating culturally appreciated alternatives. The diverse development endeavours of the current era have shown mixed signs of sustainable development so far; in some cases they have contributed to the depletion of natural resources. The current 156 million population of Bangladesh has a much smaller impact compared to countries such as Australia or USA whose populations consume and waste, per capita, more than 10 times the natural resources used by Bangladesh people.

The writer is Chairman, Chittagong Stock Exchange and former secretary and Chairman NBR.