Government
Malaysia's Bangladesh policy remains unchanged despite change in government
Malaysian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Haznah Md Hashim has said her country's policy towards Bangladesh remains the same although a new government has come into power in Malaysia.
The envoy was speaking at the annual general meeting (AGM) of the Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI) Saturday at a Dhaka hotel.
"Bangladesh and Malaysia have had a brotherly relationship since the emergence of Bangladesh. And Malaysia values its friends," Haznah, also chief patron of the BMCCI, added.
Read more: Bangladesh invites Malaysian businesses to invest in ICT parks
"We will help the Bangladeshi business community, especially the BMCCI members in any kind of endeavour."
BMCCI President Syed Almas Kabir presided over the AGM.
BMCCI Secretary General Md Motaher Hoshan Khana and Treasurer BMCCI Syed Moinuddin Ahmed also spoke.
Govt cuts soybean oil price by Tk 5 per litre, effective from Sunday
The government has cut the edible oil price by Tk5 per litre and fixed the maximum retail price of per-litre bottle of soybean oil at Tk 187 from Tk 192.
The new price of oil will be effective from next Sunday (November 18).
As per discussion with the Bangladesh Vegetable Oil Refiners and Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (BVORBMA), the association of the owners of edible oil refining and marketing companies, the Ministry of Commerce issued a notification in this regard on Thursday.
Read more: TCB to procure 2.75 crore litres of soybean oil
As per the new rates, the price of loose soybean oil has been fixed at Tk 167 and bottled soybean oil at Tk 187 per litre. A 5-litre bottle of soybean oil price is set at Tk 906 and palm oil at Tk 117 per litre.
At present, loose soybean oil retail price is Tk 172 per litre, bottled soybean oil is Tk 192 and a 5-litre bottle is Tk 925 in the retail market. Besides, the price of palm oil is 121 Tk per litre.
Autonomous, legislative and local govt bodies must have prior clearance for expenditures, Cabinet decides
The autonomous, legislative and local government bodies will need clearance from the Finance Division over financial expenditures as the Cabinet on Monday approved the draft of Public Service (Amendment) Act, 2022, incorporating such provisions.
The approval came from the cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office.
“In the existing Public Service Act, 2018, now the Finance Division has authority over the financial matters of the government entities, officials and employees, but it was not clear what would be involvement of the Finance Division regarding the autonomous, legislative and local government bodies,” said Cabinet secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam while briefing reporters at the Bangladesh secretariat.
Read: Cabinet directs to verify news, information being shared about banking sector
Explaining the provision, he said that the public universities, the Election Commission, or local bodies like city corporations and union parishads will have to take opinions of the Finance Division over their financial expenditures. “So, the Finance Division will have a say” he added.
The Cabinet Secretary, however, said it had been mandatory too for the autonomous, legislative and local government bodies to take clearance from the Finance Division before, but the enactment of the existing law in 2018 made it unclear.
The meeting also approved the proposal to sign an agreement between Bangladesh and Iran to avoid the double taxation and prevent dodges of revenue.
The meeting approved the proposal to ratify the Minamata Convention on Mercury, an international treaty adopted in 2013 in Japan to protect humans and the environment from harmful effects of mercury pollution.
The treaty came into full force in 2017 with 137 countries participating in the convention. The treaty banned the opening of new mercury mines. It also required existing mines to be phased out and the use of mercury in products to be restricted.
The total mercury release in Bangladesh is approximately 32,660kg per year, which polluted the environment, said Anwarul Islam.
Read: Cabinet approves amendment to let govt decide energy price without BERC
The Cabinet also cleared another proposal to ratify the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
The protocol, which is also known as the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS), was adopted in 2010 as a supplementary agreement to the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
Kabir Bin Anwar new Cabinet Secretary
Senior secretary to the Water Resources Ministry Kabir Bin Anwar has been appointed as the new Cabinet Secretary.
The Public Administration Ministry issued a notification in this regard on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Nazmul Ahsan, chairman (additional secretary) of Petrobangla, has been made secretary to the Water Resources Ministry, it added.
Read: Tofazzel new Principal Secretary to Prime Minister
BNP at IGP’s door; Seeks remedy for ‘fictitious’ cases
BNP on Thursday urged Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun to take steps for withdrawing the fresh ‘fictitious’ cases filed by police against the party leaders and activists.
A four-member BNP delegation, led by led by party Vice Chairman Barkatullah Bulu, met the IGP at the Police Headquarters and also handed him over a letter from BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir in this regard.
The delegation went to the Police Headquarters around 12:50 pm and had an hour-long meeting with the IGP over the fresh cases against the party leaders and activists and the party’s planned rally on December 10 in the capital.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, Bulu said fictitious cases are being filed against BNP leaders and followers by police and ruling party activists after hurling crude bombs. “Our people are being arrested in fictitious cases. So, we, on behalf of our secretary general, submitted a memorandum to the IGP in this regard.”
He said they also told the IGP that BNP leaders and workers are being harassed and their houses are being raided to arrest them in fictitious cases. “We’ve sought a remedy for this and he assured us of looking into the matters.”
The BNP leader said their party’s 50 leaders and workers were arrested from the High Court gate though they obtained bail from the apex court.
Read more: December-10 rally: BNP delegation sits with IGP
He said a ‘fictitious’ case was filed in Narsingdi against BNP men accusing them of exploding crude bombs chanting slogans in the name of Khaleda Zia, Tarique Rahman and urging people to come to BNP’s Dhaka rally. “Why should we explode bombs when we invite people to come to Dhaka?”
With the letter of the BNP Secretary General, Bulu said, a list of 169 fictitious cases--filed in between August 22 and November 26 against 6,723 identified and 15,050 unidentified people-- were given to the IGP.
Besides, he said a list of 559 arrested BNP leaders and activists was also submitted to the police boss.
About BNP’s December 10 rally, he said the police officials raised the issue of the rally. “We’ve said we want to hold it (meeting) at Nayapaltan. We sent two letters (to DMP) on November 13 and November 20 seeking Nayapaltan for our meeting venue. We didn't want any second venue.”
He said the police authorities urged them to arrange the rally at Suhrawardy Udyan promising them to extend all-out support in this regard. “We said it is not our issue today…Our standing committee and the secretary general will take a decision on it.”
The other delegation members were BNP Joint Secretary General Sayed Moazzem Hossain Alal, Publicity Secretary Shahiduddin Chowdhury Annie and Legal Affairs Secretary Kaiser Kamal.
High police officials, including Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Khandker Golam Faruq, were also present at the meeting.
Read more: BNP to avoid AL's trap over December-10 rally: Gayeshwar
Earlier on Tuesday, the DMP permitted BNP to hold its rally at Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital on December 10 on 26 conditions.
However, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday urged the government to necessary take steps so that their party can hold the rally at Nayapaltan instead of Suhrawardy Udyan on the day.
ADB to invest $2 billion over next 3 years in Bangladesh’s education sector
Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masatsugu Asakawa has told Education Minister Dr. Dipu Moni that ADB will invest 2 billion dollars in the next 3 years in Bangladesh’s education sector.
Dr. Dipu Moni held a meeting with Masatsugu Asakawa on November 25, 2022 at the ADB office. During the meeting, the education minister and the ADB president discussed the ongoing projects in the education sector of Bangladesh funded by the ADB.
They also discussed future projects to be funded by the ADB in the education sector of Bangladesh. Earlier, Dipu Moni joined a seminar on “How to Recover Learning Losses from COVID-19 School Closures”, organised by ADB and also discussions on “IFFEd (International Finance Facility for Education) initiative and ADB Education Sector Directional Guide” and “Strategic Thrusts for Bangladesh Education Sector Operation” with the officials of ADB on November 24, according to a press release.
Read: UN, ADB to support Bangladesh's fight against climate change
Dipu Moni thanked ADB for its substantial support to Bangladesh during COVID-19, particularly for providing budget support and financing vaccine procurement. She highlighted Bangladesh’s achievements in development, its graduation from LDC status and plans to become a developed country under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. She told the ADB president that the Government of Bangladesh gives highest priority to education. While acknowledging ADB’s contribution, Dipu Moni solicited further support of ADB to Bangladesh’s education sector, particularly in ICT and technical education in Bangladesh.
She requested for extended finance from International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd) for which ADB is an implementing partner. She also mentioned that the Government of Bangladesh is implementing huge stimulus programmes worth 6.23% of GDP to improve the livelihood of vulnerable people, recovering from the COVID-19 fallout. She said that the Russia-Ukraine war has put more pressure on the economy because of rise in fuel, fertilizer and food prices. He urged for ADB’s support to Bangladesh with countercyclical support facility that the country has requested for.
Read: Bangladesh has one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios: Finance Minister tells ADB
ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa welcomed the education minister and congratulated her for receiving Gusi Peace Prize. He praised the progress and achievements of Bangladesh, particularly in social sector, female education and women’s empowerment. The ADB president emphasized equitable access of all children to quality education, harnessing the technology shift in the education sector and addressing the climate change in the development. He also mentioned the importance of increasing the domestic resources. He congratulated the Education Minister Dr. Dipu Moni for being champion on International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd) and said that ADB will invest 2 billion dollars in the next 3 years in education sector in Bangladesh. He assured all support and said that cooperation between Bangladesh and ADB will be strengthened.
Dr. Dipu Moni invited him on behalf of the government to visit Bangladesh soon and see the massive development that is happening under the dynamic leadership of Sheikh Hasina and the ADB President accepted her invitation and said that he would be visiting Bangladesh in 2023.
Pilot project to realise ‘smart’ upazila in Fakirhat shows promise
The government has initiated a pilot project to turn Bagerhat’s Fakirhat into a ‘smart’ upazila - one that utilises all the advances in modern technology to achieve the best service delivery for its residents.
Besides public establishments, the people of the upazila have also started becoming digital citizens thanks to their adoption of modern technology. Local administrators, public representatives and politicians are working round the clock to ensure sustainable development of Fakirhat.
The information was made public at an event held at Betaga Field of the upazila commemorating Betaga Day.
Read more: ICT & Digital Technology to rule in new-look education system
Attending the event as chief guest, Moloy Chowdhury, Additional Secretary of Local Government Division and Project Manager of Fakirhat Upazila Management and Development Project, said that it’s the people who are actually running the local government.
“People need to develop themselves on their own to strengthen the local government. The education, health, agriculture and social works sectors of Betaga union have undergone massive development in recent years. Besides establishing good governance, accountability has also been ensured here. We’ll follow the Betaga Model to develop other parts of the country,” Moloy said.
Read more: Govt plans to revitalise ICT sector
Swapan Dash, Chairman of Fakirhat Upazila Parishad, said that after Gazipur, Fakirhat is the second place in the country where the government has launched its smart piloting program.
“All the eight unions of the upazila are providing services digitally. We’re trying our best to build a smart Fakirhat,” Swapan said.
Md Monwar, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Fakirhat, said that the people of the upazila have wholeheartedly accepted the Prime Minister’s idea of a smart Bangladesh.
“A total of 54 government offices in Fakirhat have been digitalised till now. The uses of e-documents (Electronic Documents) and d-documents (Digital Documents) are ensuring smart government services. The government is providing a modern experience to the people of Fakirhat through the use of digital technology,” said Monwar.
Read more: President Hamid wants digital transformation of Bangladesh courts
Dr Shah Mohammad Mohibullah, Health and Family Planning Officer of Fakirhat, said that the health sector in the upazila has been fully digitalized.
“We’re keeping information about the patients and their illnesses in digital databases. These databases will fix how much medicine and food the people of Fakirhat will receive from the government next year. Doctors are treating patients through telemedicine at community clinics, while birth and death registrations are also being filed digitally. All in all, the health sector of Fakirhat is widely accepting what technology has to offer,” said Mohibullah.
Shupta Majumder, an Assistant Teacher of Betaga Model Girls High School, said that her school is reaping the benefits of the government’s smart piloting program.
Read more: AL govt turned country into ‘Digital Bangladesh’, says PM
“While giving lessons using projectors, we’re also using various online tools to educate our students who are competent enough to use digital technology,” Shupta said.
The event was presided over by Md Yunus Ali, Chairman of Betaga Union Parishad. Amit Ray Chowdhury, Treasurer of Khulna University, Md Shahinuzzaman, Deputy Director of Local Government division, among others, spoke at the event.
Read more: ICT division to digitize 73 libraries, says Palak
People fuming like volcano to force govt to resign: Fakhrul
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday said the people are now eager like a “fuming volcano” to oust the current government.
“Our every rally has been held peacefully without any chaos (on our part) anywhere. But the government is so much coward that it has arrested more than 500 leaders and workers of our party in false cases,” he said.
Speaking at a discussion, the BNP leader alleged that the government has again started filing ‘false’ and ‘fictitious’ cases against the opposition leaders and activists.
Read more: Motorcade of Ilyas Ali’s wife attacked ahead of BNP’s Sylhet rally; police detains JCD men
“You (govt) have been implicating us in many cases and killing many people for 15 years. You have made 600 people to disappear, but you could not stop us. People are now fuming again like an active volcano and it’ll erupt to ensure the fall of the government,” he said.
BNP arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club, marking the 46th death anniversary of Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani.
Bhasani, popularly known as 'Majlum Jananeta' (the leader of the downtrodden), passed away on November 17, 1976.
Fakhrul hoped that BNP’s current movement will turn successful and they will be able to establish a government of the people.
Read more: BNP announces four district unit committees
He said in a new ray of hope common people are joining their divisional rallies with huge enthusiasm. “They’re coming to our rallies wearing lungis, carrying bags and with flattened rice, puffed rice, and molasses for staying three days under the open sky and thus making our rallies successful. It’s unprecedented.”
The BNP leader said their party will surely succeed in freeing the country from misrule and restore the people’s lost rights if it can take the movement to the right direction and keep up the current spirit of the masses.
“We need not pay much attention to who is saying what and where. We let them say who are talking about playing a game. We’ll stick to our goal. We must win the victory this time as we have no alternative to it,” he said.
Fakhrul called Maulana Bhasani a rare politician and urged BNP leaders and activists to follow his ideals. “We’ve been in a tough fight, and we must remember and follow him if we want to succeed.”
Read more: BNP seeks DMP permission to hold Dec-10 rally at Nayapaltan
He said the politics has now changed and the nation is going through a very bad time. “It’s difficult to find people who remember Maulana Bhasani and follow him in this bad time. He (Bhasani) did not want anything for himself. His party was elected in 1954 and formed the government, but Maulana Bhasani did not take charge of any ministry. This is Maulana Bhasani.”
Fakhrul said Maulana Bhasani never compromised with power and he always did politics for people. “Those who are doing politics for people and trying to protect the independence and sovereignty of the country need to take a lesson from him (Bhasani) that we should never compromise on our goal. We have to move forward towards our goal with all strengths without any compromise.”
BNP announces four district unit committees
BNP on Tuesday announced the partial committees of its Dhaka, Bhola, Barishal and Narayanganj district units as part of a move to overhaul the party.
Khandkar Abu Ashfaq was made the president and Nipun Roy Chowdhury the general secretary of the party’s Dhaka district unit body, said a press release signed by BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.
Besides, Khandkar Shah Mainul Hossain Biltu was appointed as the senior vice president while Shamsul Islam as the senior joint general secretary, and Erfan Ibn Aman Omi as the organising secretary of the committee. Omi is the son of BNP Chairperson's advisor Amanullah Aman.
Read more: Dhaka north BNP’s 620 units form committees
The party also formed a convening committee of its Bhola district unit with Golam Nabi Alamgir as its convener, Shafiur Rahman Kiran as no-1 joint convener and Raisul Alam as member secretary.
BNP formed the convening committee of its Barishal south district unit by appointing Abul Hossain as its convener and Abul Kalam Shaheen as member secretary.
Meanwhile, the party constituted its Narayanganj district unit by making Gias Uddin its convener and Golam Farooq Khokon member secretary.
Read more: BNP forms convening committees for Dhaka’s south, north
Besides, Mamun Mahmud was made no-1 joint convener while Monirul Islam Robi, Shahidul Islam Titu, Khandkar Mashukul Islam Rajib, Lutfar Rahman Khoka, Mosharraf Hossain and Jewel Ahmed joint conveners.
Proposals to import sugar, fertilizer get cabinet body nod
The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) on Thursday approved some 13 procurement proposals including import of sugar and fertilizer.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the virtual meeting while other members of the committee attended it.
As per the proposal placed by the Commerce Ministry, its subordinate body Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will import 12,500 metric tons of sugar from Brazil.
Local company JMI Export-Import will supply the sugar from Brazil at a total value of Tk 65.98 crore with per metric ton costing at $524.
State marketing agency Trading Corporation of Bangladesh(TCB) moved to import the bulk sugar amid the growing price of such essential commodity.
As per the proposal of the Agriculture Ministry, its subordinate body Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) will import 100,000 MT of MOP fertilizer from a Polish company at a contract value of 906.69 crore.
The Ministry of Industries placed a proposal to procure 30,000 MT of bagged granular urea fertilizer from local company Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Ltd (Kafco) at contract value of Tk 191.03 crore.
Read more: Bangladesh to buy fertiliser at lower cost, thanks to declining global price
Another similar proposal of the BCIC for the import of 30,000 MT of bulk granular urea from Muntajat of Qatar at a cost of Tk 201.78 crore under state contract also received the approval of the CCGP.
The Primary and Mass Education Ministry’s proposal to award Tk 25.89 crore contract of the National Curriculum and Textbooks Board (NCTB) to different contractors for printing, binding and supplying 75.93 lakh of Bangla and English version of textbooks for 3d, 4th and 5th grades of students also received the nod of the CCGP.
The committee approved two separate proposals of the Shipping Ministry to award contracts for dredging of different rivers under different lots.
Three proposals of the Roads and Highways Department were placed by the Roads Transport and Highways Division for the meeting which received approval of the committee.
Of these, the Roads and Highways Department will award a Tk 269.87 crore contract to Joint Venture of 1. ICT; 2. IRD; and 3. SHELADIA to appoint a consultant for the Dhaka Dhaka-Sylhet Corridor Development project under South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (Sasec).
Read more: TCB to procure 1.65 cr litres of edible oil from local suppliers again
It will award Tk 896.81 crore contract to Joint Venture of 1. Enez, Turkey and 2. TCCL, Bangladesh for civil construction works under Lot No-DS-11 of WP-06 package of the Sasec.
A contract of Tk 576.05 crore will be awarded by the Roads and Highways Department to Sinohydro Engineering Bureau 8 Corporation Ltd., China for lot No-DSA of the package-6 of the Sasec project.