Session 3: BANGLADESH’S ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION

Tuesday, Dec 7, 2021 | 6:00pm – 7:45pm | Bangladesh Time (GMT+6)

Professor Mustafizur Rahman
Distinguished Fellow, CPD

Paper Title – Bangladesh Transitioning From LDC to Post-LDC Future: Challenges and the Next Steps

Abstract:

Bangladesh is expected to graduate out of the group of LDCs in 2026. The country became a member of the LDC group in December, 1975 and it is slated to make this crucial transition after five decades. While this is a recognition of Bangladesh’s impressive success in terms of some of the key indicators of socio-economic development, graduation will entail new challenges for Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has been one of the few LDCs which was able to draw significant benefits accruing from the special and differential treatment accorded to the LDCs under the various WTO Agreements, and thanks to the preferential market access extended to the LDCs by a number of developed and developing countries. The flexibilities originating from the former have helped Bangladesh to pursue its policies with a high degree of autonomy, and the latter has provided competitive edge to her exports and contributed importantly towards strengthened global integration of the Bangladesh economy. Consequently, the loss of the international support measures will have disproportionately more impact on the Bangladesh economy, from the perspectives of both domestic policy space and the global market space. The paper will examine the possible implications of loss of international support measures for the Bangladesh economy. A sustainable transition from LDC to non-LDC status will require appropriate strategies and preparations on the part of Bangladesh. The paper will explore key strategic elements of a successful transition strategy.

In consideration of the above, the paper will focus on three areas:

First, the paper will examine how graduation will impact the Bangladesh economy, in terms of the domestic policy space and in participating in the global market space.

Second, the paper will seek to identify strategies and policies which will be required to make successful transition to the non-LDC status.

Third, the paper will propose initiatives towards strengthened regional integration of the Bangladesh economy as a key medium-term strategy to make graduation sustainable and towards making successful transition to an upper middle-income country.