Zahid Hussain speaks to DOT :
The growth and number of riches have increased, while poverty has also declined at the same time. But the rate of poverty reduction that we saw since 2010 is weaker than that recorded before 2000.
The employment rate these days is not satisfactory, especially in the manufacture and construction sectors. General and agriculture sectors are creating most employments, where there is a huge inadequacy of workplace safety and atmosphere. Incomes from the sectors are very low as well.
Though the unemployment rate is very low, those doing jobs are doing so only to make a living. But their income is not that high. We get answer to all the questions related to the issue. There is the question arises as to why the low-income group does not benefit from the growth.
Such people are not being able to participate in the growth process, remaining the under-privileged. But those having immense power are bagging the benefits of the growth, instead.
Duly, we obtained growth, but did not get internal growth what we need badly. Since the government before the last national made a new manifesto, it pledged to would bring in all facilities of a city to the villages.
Since most of the country’s population live in villages, the economic developments need to be brought to villages as well. The Economic, employment and business opportunities need to be spared from big cities like Dhaka and Chittagong to the rest of the country.
Based on an interview by Khairul Alam, translated by Sayeed Muhammad
The Writter is a Lead Economist of World Bank Bangladesh