Karachi, 10 November 2022:

Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Karachi organized an image promotion and image building event titled “Branding Bangladesh – Role Model of Development” at the Chancery on 06 November 2022. Around 100 dignitaries including eminent investors, industrialists, entrepreneurs, exporters & importers, businesspersons, investment bankers, cultural activists, social workers, philanthropists, Colum writers, and academics based in Karachi were present at the Branding Bangladesh event. The program included video screening on the success stories of Bangladesh’s socio-economic development including the mega projects on development in Bangladesh. A video on the Padma Bridge, which is a symbol of pride and confidence of Bangladesh was also screened as a significant success story of Bangladesh in the recent time.

Deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Karachi S. M. Mahbubul Alam also highlighted the positive Bangladesh in the interactive session. He highlighted that Bangladesh has become a ‘Role Model’ of socio-economic development in the world. Bangladesh has been working for the establishment of 100 Special Economic Zones with foreign investment friendly policies. The ‘Digital Bangladesh’ initiative has stimulated transformative impacts on socio-economic development, education, disaster risk reduction, and women’s empowerment. The disaster management is also a success story of Bangladesh.  

Deputy High Commissioner further highlighted that Bangladesh is currently one of the five fastest growing economies in the world. Bangladesh is the 41st in terms of GDP. Before the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, GDP growth rate of Bangladesh in Fiscal Year 2018-19 was 8.15 percent and earlier Bangladesh achieved GDP growth of over 7 percent for three consecutive years. Even in the midst of the pandemic, the economy of Bangladesh expanded by 6.94 percent in the fiscal year 2020-21. He added that Bangladesh has attained all the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and some of which were attained much before the deadline and Bangladesh has been on a right track to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs). He further highlighted that Bangladesh has already fulfilled all the criteria for graduation to a developing country from the LDC status and has been confirmed to be graduated from the LDC in 2026. The present government of Bangladesh has been striving hard to turn Bangladesh into upper middle-income country by 2031 and a knowledge-based developed country by 2041 and building a prosperous and climate-resilient delta by 2100.  

Deputy High Commissioner also highlighted that Bangladesh is the largest delta in the world, which is a production powerhouse and Bangladesh is among world’s top 10 in 13 sectors. He further mentioned that Bangladesh is 1^st in Hilsa production, 1^st in Jute export, 2^nd in Jute production, 2^nd in RMG production, 2^nd in Goat’s milk production, 2^nd in outsourcing personnel, 2^nd in Jackfruit production, 3^rd in Vegetable production, 3^rd in Freshwater fish production, 4^th in Rice production, 7^th in Potatoes production, 8^th in Remittance receipt, and 8^th in Guava production. He further added that Bangladesh has the longest unbroken sandy beach and the largest mangrove forest in the world. Bangladesh is a green country and self-sufficient in food production. Bangladesh is naturally blessed with hundreds of rivers and tributaries, six-seasons including lot of rains during the monsoon and with fertile plain lands and in the world, Bangladesh has the highest percentage of arable land in compared to the total area of the country and has the highest percentage of cultivated land in comparison with the total area of the country.

Deputy High Commissioner further highlighted that in Bangladesh the current primary enrollment rate is over 98 percent, the literacy rate is around 78 percent, electricity coverage across the country is 100 percent, and per capita income is USD2,824. He further added that in Bangladesh currently there are around 160 universities including 53 public universities and 103 private universities but the number of universities in Bangladesh was only less than eight in 1971. The number of medical colleges in Bangladesh were also less than seven in 1971, whereas currently there are over 112 medical colleges in Bangladesh including 37 public and 70 private medical colleges producing over 10,000 doctors each year. Bangladesh distributes over 400 million copies of free textbooks among the students of primary and secondary levels on the 1^st of January every year since 2010, which is also a unique success story of Bangladesh. He further added that Bangladesh is the 2^nd highest troops contributing country in UN Peacekeeping and Peace-Building operations. Bangladesh is a land of rich culture and traditions of thousand years. Bangladesh is a peace-loving secular democratic country, which has been growing holistically with extraordinary harmony, inclusivity and peaceful co-existence across the beliefs and faiths.

Deputy High Commissioner S. M. Mahbubul Alam also briefed that Bangladesh has been pursuing the foreign policy of “Friendship to all and malice towards none” since her Independence in 1971 as was postulated by the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which continues to provide the philosophical underpinning of Bangladesh’s pro-peace foreign policy. He further mentioned that Father of the Nation propounded the peace and development-centric foreign policy, which remains the guiding principle of Bangladesh’s diplomatic engagements today.

The academics, business elites and dignitaries present at the Branding Bangladesh program highly appreciated the socio-economic developments in Bangladesh. They were highly impressed by the fabulous success stories of Bangladesh’s socio-economic developments and other unique achievements and features on Bangladesh. They highly lauded the hard working, committed, patriotic, peace-loving and talented people of Bangladesh and the pro-development policies and initiatives of Bangladesh.