These days, we are passing through unfortunate incidents, triggered by political confrontation. In the entire month of January, lives are being lost almost every day, in arson, bomb attacks or in ‘gunfights’. Damage to properties has also been a regular phenomenon.
Amid heightened political crisis, the non-stop blockade since 6 January has resulted in disruption in economic activities, road transportation and threatened the present and future business potentials of the country. However, there was no sign of recess and the rival political camps are yet to come closer to any constructive engagement.
Under the circumstances, the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry has called for resolving political differences to allow undisturbed economic activities in a stable situation. In a report, the chamber pointed out that the blockade or hartal programme causes up to Tk 2,500 crore losses daily.
A major casualty of political unrest, which goes beyond the notice of many people, is the education sector. Various educational activities from primary to tertiary level have come to a virtual halt whereas hundreds of thousands of educated youths are coming to the job market and looking for newer opportunities.
Despite the uncertainties, business cannot stop. We need to see what is being demanded in the job sector and what actually is taught in our academic institutions.With thousands studying business administration, there are a lot of business graduates and post-graduates in the country. Are they on the right track on learning the right set of skills? Are employers still looking for the ultimate perfectionists? Our cover story, ‘Profiting from Basics’ tries to raise some of these issues.
As far as overseas employment is concerned, aggressive diplomacy and consistent private sector engagement are required for reopening Bangladesh’s prospects in the labour market, according to Md. Abul Bashar, president of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA). In an interview, he underscored the need for tapping potential markets in the countries where there is increasing demand for caregivers due to aging problems, for example. He said that the private sector and the government have to focus on training manpower as there is no alternative to training, given the consistent technological progress and need for updating knowledge and skills.
We also tried to venture out to non-business academic ventures, and featured technical education as another way forward. With too many hopeful executives graduating every year, there is a low turnout for technically-skilled manpower locally. This could be a huge area for employment generation, provided students are motivated properly to pursue technical education and the government can consolidate the quality of technical skill trainings.
We have dished out our regular features during this period of anxiety, as we believe in being both objective and yet optimistic about the growth of business in Bangladesh. We hope that the political parties can come to a democratic solution to the crisis and allow the citizens to march forward and contribute to the national economy. Bangladesh cannot afford not to make progress, socially, politically and economically.
