Nawshad Ahmed

A common question is how and by whom are prices fixed in the market? The question arises because every now and then the price of one essential consumer item or the other goes up without our notice.

All indications in the past few weeks give an impression that the country is turning around. Economic activities have been picking up fast after a prolonged lockdown of about four months.

If half of the population of Bangladesh and up to 70 percent of children are deficient in vitamin D, then it must be a major cause for concern for us. Despite having the natural advantage of abundant sunshine all year round allowing vitamin D synthesis, why are we having this phenomenon in our population?

Government projects targeting the poor, like any other projects, if not well planned and properly implemented, will not yield their desired outcomes.

Social research is generally not a priority during a serious crisis. Despite the fact that Covid-19 has dramatically impacted our society and altered the life patterns of a large section of the population, we have undertaken very few studies in Bangladesh to assist informed decision-making during this pandemic.

The Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was a visionary leader whose birth centenary is being celebrated this year.

In building urban infrastructure and services, we are faced with a huge challenge of meeting the demand created by increasing rate of urbanisation in Bangladesh.

Monitoring and evaluation are proven tools to determine the extent to which public sector development projects and programmes are on track and if adjustments are required to improve their performance.

I have been asked by several close friends recently, why we need social protection measures to address poverty in Bangladesh—a country which has the world’s largest microcredit programme. One might ask: is it because the microcredit programme is not fulfilling its promise of alleviating poverty and social protection is therefore going to replace it?

The near absence of an environment-friendly urban waste management system in Bangladesh is a major concern for the citizens.

The Dhanmondi lake deserves some serious attention by the relevant authorities to save it from pollution.

Education and skills are important prerequisites for faster economic and social development of a country. A skilled workforce is an asset and helps in ensuring enhanced productivity, adoption of new technology, global competitiveness, increased income and reduction of poverty. The East Asian countries achieved a higher growth path with adequate investment in skills development.

Social values form the basic foundation of a nation. The values define what is acceptable in a society and determine the behaviour of the people. Social values are however not static and can change over time based on what beliefs and attitudes people embrace as they move on.

The alarmingly high level of noise pollution in Dhaka city calls for urgent attention of the authorities as well as the people at large.

The share of Bangladesh's urban population reached 35 percent in 2018 with a total urban population of about 58 million, which is expected to reach 80 million by 2030.

Child mortality reduction was a crucial aspect of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It is considered to be an important indicator of socioeconomic advancement under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Target 3.2 under Goal 3 of the SDGs calls for ending preventable deaths of newborns and children under five years of age.