SEXUAL and reproductive health and rights lie at the foundation of bodily freedom, gender justice and fair development. They are not limited to medical access but stretch into the right to decide 鈥� freely and safely 鈥� about one鈥檚 body, one鈥檚 relationships and one鈥檚 future. For Bangladesh, which has made remarkable socio-economic progress in recent decades, ensuring...
FRANCESCA Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in occupied Palestine, stands as a testament to the notion of speaking truth to power. This 鈥榩ower鈥� is not solely embodied by Israel or even the United States, but by an international community whose collective relevance has tragically failed to stem the ongoing genocide in Gaza...
ANYONE living in Bangladesh knows how disasters feel. The rivers swell, the winds rise, the water comes fast and heavy. Cyclones, floods, landslides, river erosion 鈥� they are part of life. Families flee with children on their shoulders. Fields go underwater. Homes are washed away. This is not a one-off event. It is a yearly pattern that鈥檚 only getting worse...
IT HAS been more than two months since the Labour Reform Commission released its report, outlining the reformation of labour law in Bangladesh. Although the reform proposals have not yet been enacted into statutory law, the commission鈥檚 report offers insight into the changes that should be made to the existing legal framework...
IN THE long corridors of Bangladesh鈥檚 educational institutions 鈥� be it a public school in Barishal, a madrasa in Sylhet, or an elite English-medium school in Dhaka 鈥� there鈥檚 a silence louder than the morning assembly bell. It鈥檚 the silence of boys not crying, not speaking, not asking for help. The silence of boys being boys鈥攕toic, invulnerable, 鈥榮trong.鈥� And buried...
THE title is a deliberate intrigue, meant to evoke the inevitability of both Fallout and Fallin 鈥� a duality often at play in real-life events, particularly those with global repercussions. Fallout symbolises the aftermath: the economic tremors, unintended spillovers, and long-term disruptions that trail major geopolitical or financial decisions. Fallin鈥�, on the other hand, captures...
INNOVATION, automation and the rapid digitisation of life are changing economies across the world, and Bangladesh is right in the middle of that shift. Every year, more than two million young people enter the workforce here, but most find themselves up against a job market that鈥檚 shrinking in real terms. The public sector is already full, and many private sector jobs are...
IN BANGLADESH鈥橲 parched boro fields, water is not just a resource; it is the currency of food security and rural prosperity. With over 80 per cent of the country鈥檚 cropland now irrigated, primarily during the dry season, irrigation has doubled rice yields since the 1970s and propelled near self-sufficiency in staple foods. Yet this achievement carries hidden economic and...
BANGLADESH鈥橲 pharmaceutical industry has long been a success story of transformation. Originating in the early 1980s as an import-dependent sector, it has evolved into a thriving hub for the production of generic medicines that reliably meet the needs of its domestic population while serving over 100 export markets. With a current market valuation of around...
I RETURNED to the US from Cuba just a few hours before president Donald Trump signed a memorandum on June 30 tightening the long-standing US economic blockade. The memorandum includes a statutory ban on US tourism to the neighboring island...
NAMES can and do mislead. Especially when they are deployed to disguise betrayal as benevolence. The US Senate has just passed what Donald Trump hails as 鈥榦ne big, beautiful bill鈥� 鈥� a sweeping tax package projected to add $3.7 trillion to the national debt over a decade. Upon narrowly passing the Senate in a 50鈥�50 tie, broken only by the vice president鈥檚 vote...
AFTER years of inertia and unfulfilled promises, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation has once again come under scrutiny, this time with a sharp nudge from China. Beijing鈥檚 recent remarks are not subtle: if SAARC has failed to function, then it may be time for South Asia to rethink its model for regional cooperation. The suggestion? Build something...
IT IS time to embrace a new era of medical science in which treatments are not based on a 鈥榦ne-size-fits-all鈥� approach but are tailored to a person鈥檚 genetic makeup. Personalised medicine, based on pharmacogenomics, the study of the effect of genes on drug response, has the potential to transform health care in Bangladesh. The use of personalised medicine...
FARMING in South Asia is standing at a crossroads: rising populations, erratic weather and a deep digital divide. As reported by Food and Agriculture Organisation (2017) in 鈥楾he future of food and agriculture: trends and challenges鈥�, global food...
MORE than 1.4 million lives were upended overnight by flooding in 2024. Now, heavy monsoon rain has lashed Patuakhali and Cox鈥檚 Bazar while Feni faces trouble afresh. The River Muhuri has surged 137 centimetres above the danger level, triggering...
