Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (Sunday) said her government is set to formulate a Smooth Transition Strategy (STS) to continue the ongoing development spree for transforming Bangladesh into a developed and prosperous nation by 2041. "We have taken a measure to formulate a Smooth Transition Strategy aimed at continuing the country's ongoing development spree," she said. The Prime Minister said this while addressing a function, arranged to celebrate the formal recognition of Bangladesh’s graduation to a developing nation by the United Nations (UN), at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in the capital. Joining virtually from her official Ganabhaban residence, she also said, the strategy would have effective guidelines to cash on the prospects and face the challenges which might be arisen in continuing the development journey of the nation. The Prime Minister called upon the authorities concerned to prepare an effective strategy based on research and data. Sheikh Hasina said: “We have to materialise the dream of Father of the Nation to build a developed and prosperous country.” The Prime Minister vowed to go ahead with the ideals of Bangabandhu to materialise his dream no matter how much dark the path would be. "I know many bullets, bombs, and grenades are waiting for me. I never care about those. I am working to change the fate of the people, and I will definitely do it," she said. She continued: “No matter whatever hurdle comes before me as I know the paths of the people, who love their country, and they would have to go through many impediments." Nobody would live forever, the Prime Minister said, adding so, the new generation would have to shoulder the responsibilities to carry forward the country’s development spree towards prosperity. "I want to call upon the new generation to love the country and to work for its people," she said hoping that the development spree will be continued at the hands of the future generation. Presidents of the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, JICA and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and Administrator of the USAID through video messages greeted Bangladesh for its graduation to a developing country. On behalf of the UN Secretary-General, a video message was also screened at the ceremony. Bangladesh U-19 Women Football Team which clinched the SAFF U-19 Women Champion also greeted the Prime Minister for the graduation. Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni spoke on the occasion while secretary of the Economic Relations Division Fatima Yasmin gave the welcome address. Representatives from the young generation also expressed their feelings on Bangladesh's graduation. At the onset of the programme, the national anthem was played. Several video documentaries on the development journey of Bangladesh, achieved under the leadership of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, were also screened. Describing the UN recognition as a great achievement for Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina said that the accomplishment of Bangladesh’s graduation from the LDC to a developing country did not come ordinarily, rather it has been possible due to her government’s planned initiatives that included short, medium and long-term plans alongside unwavering support of the countrymen, development partners and friendly countries.   She said the development miracle has come as the Awami League led-government has remained in power for the last 13 years since 2009.   The Prime Minister promised that she would never stop the journey to take the nation forward and make it a developed and prosperous one confronting all the odds, such as thorny, daunting, dark, and bloody paths, to materialize the dream of the Father of the Nation.   She said that the UN recognition would make Bangladesh one step ahead to materialise the dream of Father of the Nation to give the countrymen a beautiful and developed life.   Reciting some verses from a poem "Stopping Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost, she said: "The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But, I have promises to keep, And Miles to go before I sleep, And Miles to go before I sleep." The Prime Minister said that her government has already implemented the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals and it is implementing the Sustainable Development Goals and also working to transform Bangladesh into a developed country by 2041.   Highlighting various development programmes taken by the government to ensure the country’s overall progress, she said that they have formulated the Delta Plan-2100 which is now being implemented to continue the development spree.   The Prime Minister said that Bangabandhu’s government had achieved 9 percent GDP growth during his only three and a half years tenure alongside rebuilding a war-ravaged country, referring to various development measures taken by him.   Sheikh Hasina, the elder daughter of Father of the Nation, said no other government had been able to achieve the growth.   When Bangabandhu had taken a programme to make Bangladesh a developed country decentralizing the power to the grassroots, he along with most of his family members were brutally killed on August 15, 1975.   After Bangabandhu's assassination, the governments of military dictators did nothing for the countrymen.   Assuming office after 21 years, the Awami League government has started working to change the fate of the Bangladeshi people.   After Bangabandhu’s government, her government had been able to achieve 8 percent growth in GDP, she said.   But the Coronavirus pandemic has stalled everything not only in Bangladesh but across the globe, she added.   The Prime Minister said that her government has already given 13 crore doses of the Covid-19 vaccines as part of her government’s move to bring the people under vaccination free of cost while inoculation of booster doses has already started. Source: BSS AH

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday urged world leaders to formulate a well-coordinated roadmap to face the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. "The Covid-19 pandemic has created a multifaceted global problem and it should be addressed globally. We need a well-coordinated roadmap to face this crisis," she said while virtually inaugurating the 14th international conference of the Finance Ministers of ASEM member countries. Bangladesh hosted the meeting virtually which the Prime Minister opened by delivering a pre-recorded video message. The theme of the 14th ASEM Finance Ministers Meeting is “Addressing Covid-19: Ensuring a Strong, Sustainable, Inclusive and Balanced Recovery”. Sheikh Hasina expressed her optimism that the world is going to get effective vaccines against Covid-19 soon. She has called for making the vaccines available at free of costs for all countries. "We’re hoping that the world is going to get effective vaccines soon. They must be made available for all countries, especially the LDCs and developing ones, at free of cost. The rich countries and, the MDBs and IFIs should come forward with generous support in this regard," she said. Concerted efforts for recovery The Prime Minister urged the rich countries, Multilateral Development Banks (MDB) and International Financial Institutions (IFIs) to come forward. Emphasising greater collaboration to conquer any hurdle on the path to prosperity during this difficult time, she said that collaboration, not isolation, can help overcome any crisis. The advanced economies must fulfill their unmet promises concerning duty-free and quota-free market access, and technology support for developing countries, the Prime Minister said. Urging the G-7, G-20, OECD countries, MDB and IFIs to play their vital roles to bail out the affected LDCs and developing nations, she said, "They’ll have to come forward with increasing fiscal stimulus, concessional finance, and debt relief measures." The Prime Minister said that the Covid-19 pandemic has had devastating impacts on the health systems and the economies of all countries. She said the least developed and developing countries, in particular, are the worst-hit by the pandemic and a vast majority of the people is suffering from the loss of income and employment. Sheikh Hasina mentioned that poverty is worsening and the health sector is facing serious challenges, while progress in achieving SDGs and hard-earned prosperity of most countries are at stake. ‘Bangladesh economy bouncing back’ About Bangladesh’s efforts for advancing its economy, the Prime Minister said, Bangladesh achieved sustained high growth in the last one decade and also attained tremendous progress in some socio-economic indicators. She mentioned that the government also adopted “Vision 2041” aiming to elevate Bangladesh to an upper-middle-income country by 2031 and a developed one by 2041, she said adding that the country was well on track to achieve SDGs. But the pandemic made a serious dent on the advancements despite her government’s all-out efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus, she said, noting that a large stimulus package was given to recover from the economic losses. Sheikh Hasina elaborated that her government has so far announced 21 stimulus packages equivalent to USD 14.14 billion for various sectors as well as support to different segments of the society. She said that after suffering an initial setback for a few months, the economy has started recovering. In this regard, she highlighted the latest trends in the export, remittance and agricultural production which indicate that the economy is now getting back on track towards the sustained growth path. Finance Minister AHM Mostafa Kamal gave the welcome address, while vice presidents of World Bank and ADB, as well as the IMF’s Deputy Director for the Asia-Pacific region, delivered keynote speeches at the conference. Finance Ministers, Advisors on the Ministry of Finance and concerned representatives of the ASEM member states including Germany, Spain, Poland, Bulgaria, Thailand, Japan, China, Myanmar, Indonesia and Singapore are taking part. Source: UNB AH

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Monday alleged that the Election Commission (EC) has proposed the enactment of ‘Local Government Institutions Election Act-2020’ to give the ruling party an "absolute" power. “We know this Election Commission doesn't pay heed to our any statement as their responsibility is to implement the government agenda. They proposed formulating Local Government Institutions Election Act-2020 with an ulterior motive,” he said. The BNP leader said “The only purpose of the act is to give the ruling party absolute power, and turn the Election Commission into a more subservient institution.” Fakhrul made the remarks at a press conference at BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office. He said the current EC is formulating various laws to strengthen the hands of the government which ‘lacks’ public mandate. Speaking at the press conference, BNP standing committee member Nazrul Islam Khan said the EC has changed many basic rules in the proposed law. “A large part of the proposed law--from section 66 to 84--doesn’t match the existing laws of local government.” He also said if a single law is enacted by unifying different laws, it will be complicated and difficult to understand the relevant rules and regulations for separate local government bodies from that unified law. So, we think the Commission’s this move is inconsistent and not acceptable.” The BNP leader said it is unnecessary to enact the act amid a pandemic situation without taking the opinions of relevant stakeholders, including voters and candidates. He said the EC should now concentrate on working out effective measures to check vote rigging, ballot stuffing, ensuring election atmosphere, preventing terrorism and violence instead of making such an act for which no party has so far made any demand. "We urge the Commission to refrain from this unnecessary and unjustified initiative of enacting the proposed Local Government Institutions Election Act-2020 amid the ongoing corona crisis,” the BNP leader said. He also warned that the country’s people will not accept if the EC unilaterally enacts the act ignoring BNP’s demands and proposals.  About the by-polls to Dhaka-18 and Sirajganj-1, Fakhrul said the ruling party candidates and their supporters are indulging in serious irregularities since the media is not giving attention to the by-elections. “Elections have now turned into a farce as the Election Commission has become a subservient institution. I urge the media to cover the by-polls,” he added. Source: UNB AH

Law Minister Anisul Huq said, the government is working for formulating digital security act to stop airing and publishing fake news. Formation of cyber court and information cell to prevent rumors as well as initiatives have been taken for registration of online news portals for their accountability. At the same time the government is working to formulate online policy. He said these as the chief guest at a discussion titled 'Fake news and Hate speech, Causes and Consequences: How it subverts our democratic systems' at Cosmos Center at Malibagh in the capital on Saturday. Cosmos Foundation organized the program. The Law Minister said, fake news are published in our country with five intentions. The intentions are-spreading communal rumors, extreme political religious lying, to hurt the political opponent, creating panic in public mind and spreading nonscientific imaginary matters. Of these intentions the number five is not harmful but the rest four have violent influence for spreading fake news. The Law Minister also said, the persons involved in fake news should be brought under punishment and their financial source should be found out. To stop airing and publishing fake news BTRC, ICT division, police department and the intelligence agencies of the government are working. In this regard the mainstream media have important role to play. The meeting presided over by Cosmos Foundation Chairman Enayetullah Khan where Chief Researcher of Institute of South Asian Studies in Singapore Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury and president of Association for Accountability and Internet Democracy Dan Shefet also delivered speeches. AH      

Information Minister Dr. Hasan Mahmud said, writing something against somebody and spreading rumors in social media are not only possible from the country but also from staying abroad. Time has come to bring the matter under universal rules and regulations. It is not only thinkable matter for Bangladesh but also for other countries. He said these as the chief guest at a program organized at the Cosmos center in the capital on Saturday. Hasan Mahmud said, there are around eight crore internet users in the country. Misuse of social media has also increased in this era of internet. Journalists have to be more attentive at present as unedited news has increased in online social media. He said, media sector has expanded during the rule of present government and along with false news has increased. As well as there is an online revolution in social media. To the journalists the minister said, mistake may occur while discharging responsibility. You should do constructive criticism to the mistakes. Constructive criticism makes the work sharp. But if the criticism is blind then it makes us frustrated. Hasan Mahmud said, the incumbent government is working for liberty of mass media. We are working on ninth wage board. Mass media policy is formulated. It has to be turned into law. Mentioning that liberty of media is fully attached with accountability the minister said, liberty and accountability should work together for the welfare of state, society and country. AH