Bangladesh
Countries in Asia and the Pacific face a heightened risk of flooding as disasters increase worldwide due to climate change. Yet these countries often lack the infrastructure necessary to prepare for and respond to floods effectively. When flood protection measures exist, they generally rely only on grey, hard-engineered infrastructure, which has been increasingly challenged in recent years. Nature-based solutions (NbS) offer a new approach for flood management, with several co-benefits beyond the reduction of risks. This approach has gained recognition from policy makers in the region, but they are confronted with a number of challenges, including the lack of a clear, common definition and guidelines, as well as financing issues. The growing imperatives of climate adaptation call for complementary, innovative and forward-looking solutions, such as a combined approach incorporating both NbS and grey infrastructure.
Subnational governments in Asia and the Pacific are key providers of the public services and infrastructure required to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Given this role, it is essential that policymakers and development partners understand and support the effective functioning of multi-level governance structures and subnational government finances across the region.
This joint OECD-ADB report provides a comprehensive overview of subnational governments across Asia and the Pacific. It covers over 467,000 subnational governments from 26 countries, which represent 53% of the world’s population and 40% of global GDP. On average in 2020, subnational governments in the region accounted for 29% of total public expenditure (8.8% of GDP), 35% of total public revenue (8.5% of GDP) and 38% of public investment (2% of GDP).
Harnessing unique data from the 3rd edition of the OECD-UCLG World Observatory on Subnational Government Finance and Investment, the analysis highlights how decentralisation and territorial reforms have reconfigured the structures and finances of subnational governments in the region. It covers a range of topics including fiscal rules, financial management capacity, priority-based budgeting, asset management and the use of public-private partnerships.
Half a century after independence, Bangladesh has achieved impressive progress. The country has transformed from one of the poorest nations into a global textile manufacturing hub capable of meeting its medical needs almost entirely through domestic pharmaceutical production. The country will graduate from the least developed country (LDC) category in 2026 and aspires to be a high-income nation through industrialisation by 2041. Meeting this challenge requires accelerating economic transformation through diversification and innovation. This Production Transformation Policy Review (PTPR), implemented with the support and collaboration of the European Union (EU), and in partnership with the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), identifies concrete options for supporting Bangladesh’s development. It calls for leveraging digitalisation to address persistent fragilities and it advocates for a new pact based on shared responsibilities between the national government, the private sector and international partners to shift to a new development phase and ensure sustainable, smooth and irreversible graduation.
The TOSSD statistical framework aims to provide a complete picture of all official resources flowing into developing countries for their sustainable development, providing reliable, comparable and transparent data. This working paper compares the TOSSD data for the year 2019 with datasets collected by three countries: Bangladesh, Cameroon and Colombia. The study explores similarities and differences between the TOSSD data and the data collected at the local level, and provides recommendations on how to improve data completeness and accuracy. It also suggests how a data validation mechanism for TOSSD could work, allowing recipient countries to provide timely feedback.
This annual publication compiles comparable tax revenue statistics for Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, People’s Republic of China, Cook Islands, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nauru, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tokelau, Vanuatu and Viet Nam. It also provides information on non-tax revenues for selected economies. Based on the OECD Global Revenue Statistics database, the publication applies the OECD methodology to Asian and Pacific economies to enable comparison of tax levels and tax structures on a consistent basis, both among the economies of the region and with other economies worldwide. This edition includes a special feature on strengthening tax revenues in developing Asia. The publication is jointly produced by the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and the OECD Development Centre, in co-operation with the Asian Development Bank, the Pacific Island Tax Administrators Association and the Pacific Community.
This case study explores whether the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be used as a shared framework by all actors to manage development co-operation for results in lower middle-income countries, taking Bangladesh as a case study. The study offers an introduction to Bangladesh’s progress in mainstreaming the Goals in national policy making, as well as in monitoring the SDG targets and indicators. The report then focuses on the experiences of development co-operation partners in aligning their country-level programmes and frameworks with the SDGs, and identifies enabling factors, drivers and obstacles that contribute to SDG alignment and monitoring in Bangladesh. The study concludes with recommendations for both the government and its development partners to increase the collective use of the SDG framework and improve the policy coherence, effectiveness and sustainable impact of all development efforts.
L’instauration de sociétés durables, équitables et résilientes est le défi qui se pose à l’humanité au XXIe siècle. Pour réaliser cette ambition, la communauté internationale du développement a besoin d’un cadre de référence commun, universel, pour travailler en plus étroite coopération. Les Objectifs de développement durable (ODD) répondent manifestement à ce besoin, mais des problèmes d’ordre technique, politique et structurel empêchent les fournisseurs de coopération pour le développement de les utiliser comme cadre de résultats commun.
S'appuyant sur sept études de cas, cette publication identifie deux facteurs déterminants et un évènement majeur qui peuvent aider à surmonter ces défis. En premier lieu, la prise en main par les pays doit être soutenue par la communauté internationale. En second lieu, les partenaires au développement doivent changer leur organisation pour réaliser les ODD. Enfin, en obligeant les gouvernements et les partenaires au développement à redéfinir leurs stratégies à long terme et à revoir leurs mécanismes internes, la pandémie de COVID-19 offre une occasion rare d’utiliser le cadre des ODD collectivement comme une feuille de route vers la reprise : cette crise peut changer la donne.
Achieving sustainable, equitable and resilient societies is humankind’s challenge for the 21st century. In pursuit of this ambition, the international development community needs a shared, universal framework, within which to work more closely together. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the obvious answer, but a number of technical, political and organisational challenges prevent development co-operation providers from using them as their common results framework. Based on seven case studies, this publication identifies two critical factors and one game changer that can help overcome those challenges. First, country leadership needs to be supported by the international community. Second, development partners need to change their set-ups in order to deliver on the SDGs. Finally, by forcing governments and development partners to reset their long-term strategies and rethink their internal systems, the COVID-19 pandemic provides them with a rare opportunity to use the SDG framework collectively as a roadmap to recovery: this can be a game changer.
The world is increasingly facing a technologically changing employment landscape and such changes are directly affecting the future demand for skills. For regional economies built on labour migration, the impending changes will affect migrants and their families, their countries of origin and the recruitment systems they are attached to – and ultimately disrupt the development benefits of migration. This paper investigates how the future of the employment landscape will affect migration within the Abu Dhabi Dialogue, a regional consultative process for migration in Asia. It investigates the impending changes in the demand for skills in countries of destination, how such changes will affect migration processes and whether countries of origin are ready for the changes. It provides recommendations on how regional consultative processes can foster dialogue between key actors from both countries of origin and destination to better navigate future changes and ensure a smooth transition.
Blockchain is mainstreaming, but the number of blockchain for development use-cases with proven success beyond the pilot stage remain relatively few. This paper outlines key blockchain concepts and implications in order to help policymakers reach realistic conclusions when considering its use. The paper surveys the broad landscape of blockchain for development to identify where the technology can optimise development impact and minimise harm. It subsequently critically examines four successful applications, including the World Food Programme’s Building Blocks, Oxfam’s UnBlocked Cash project, KfW’s TruBudget and Seso Global. As part of the on-going work co-ordinated by the OECD’s Blockchain Policy Centre, this paper asserts that post-COVID-19, Development Assistance Committee (DAC) donors and their development partners have a unique opportunity to shape blockchain’s implementation.
This paper explores how innovation in low and middle-income countries is enhancing their local and national responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper also analyses how innovation could further address locally relevant development challenges by mobilising resources, improving processes and catalysing collaboration. Lastly it examines how international development organisations can improve their support for local and national innovation efforts.
In May 2016, the World Humanitarian Summit represented a turning point for humanitarian policies. The Summit gave the impetus to seriously reflect on how to operate in environments where people’s needs don’t coincide anymore with existing mandates and sectors. The OECD believes that an effective humanitarian response is the one that addresses affected people’s needs in a timely and efficient manner. One way to measure effectiveness is to ask aid beneficiaries what they think about the aid they get. With this is mind, the OECD initiated a first round of surveys during the cycle 2016-2017 in six countries affected by different type of crisis : Lebanon, Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq, Somalia and Uganda. Two years after the World humanitarian Summit, the OECD and Ground Truth Solutions took another round of surveys in the same countries, plus Bangladesh. The purpose of this second round of surveys is to assess whether the commitments made at the World Humanitarian Summit, including the Grand Bargain, are having a tangible impact on people’s lives in the most difficult contexts in the world. This paper provides some answers to this question.
Over the past ten years economic growth in Asia has contributed to a reduction of poverty as well as fertility rates, and greater prosperity has contributed to gains in life expectancy. However, at present many workers still work in informal employment, frequently for long hours at little pay and without social protection coverage. A growing demand for social support, extending the coverage of social protection benefits and improving the job quality of workers will be among Asia’s major challenges in future. This report considers these challenges, providing policy examples from countries to illustrate good practice, including Bangladesh, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore and Viet Nam.
Ce jeu de données est issu de la base de données présentée dans les Perspectives Agricoles de l'OCDE et de la FAO 2013-2022. La table contient des projections du marché agricole et des principales denrées agricoles comme les céréales, les oléagineux, les produits laitiers, le coton, et d'autres. Sont incluses des données sur le commerce agricole en général, notamment sur la production, les prix, la balance commerciale, les stocks en fin de période, la consommation, la transformation, etc. Pour la plupart des marchés et denrées agricoles analysés dans les Perspectives Agricoles, les prix intérieurs et mondiaux sont aussi disponibles. La majeure partie des données remontent jusqu'en 1970 et couvrent jusqu'à la dernière année de projection (actuellement 2022).
This dataset stems from the database presented in the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2013-2022. The table contains projections on the agriculture market and commodities such as cereals, oilseeds, diary products, cotton and more. It includes statistics on the trade side including data on production, prices, trade balance, ending stocks, consumption, transformation, etc. For most of the commodity markets analysed in the Agricultural Outlook, domestic and international commodity prices are also available. In most cases the data go back to 1970 and cover up to the latest year of projection (currently 2022).
In 1995/96, 47.5 per cent of the population of Bangladesh were still living below the poverty line. While this represents a decline compared to 62.6 per cent in 1983/84, the absolute number of poor people has in fact increased over the same period. This paper argues that the persistence of poverty in Bangladesh originates less in the lack of resources for its alleviation than in the failures of governance.
These failures consist of a lack of a developmental vision, absence of a commitment that goes beyond rhetoric and that could translate the vision into policies and programmes, and weak capacities at the administrative, technical and political levels to implement such programmes. As a corollary of these failures, successive governments have surrendered ownership over national policy agendas in the field of poverty alleviation to international donors and NGOs. Furthermore, different areas of policy–making have been appropriated by special interest groups pursuing sectional concerns ...
In March 2023, at the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) in Qatar, development partners reaffirmed their commitment to lift LDCs from the cycle of extreme poverty, instability and vulnerability that limits their development prospects. The Doha Programme of Action outlines a ten-year plan to support LDC development efforts through enhanced international partnerships. LDC5 also marked a special milestone: it will be the last UN LDC conference in which Bangladesh participates as an LDC.
Bangladesh, strategically located in South Asia, is a key Indo-Pacific player with considerable development potential. Since gaining independence in 1971, the country has achieved remarkable progress. With an average annual GDP growth of 6% since the 2000s, Bangladesh ranks among the fastest growing economies in the world and has demonstrated significant resilience to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
The current global economic and political landscape is marked by turbulence, complexity, and rapid change. Governments, businesses and societies are striving to comprehend the ongoing technological, digital, and industrial reorganisation processes and their profound potential impacts on the economy and society. In a time where it is evident that growth is a necessary but not sufficient condition for development, and incentives are required to ensure inclusive and sustainable growth, the planning and execution of strategies for economic transformation are of paramount importance.