Wasim Bin Habib

As confusion continues over the price of Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, the government and the Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd have reiterated that Bangladesh will get the vaccine at the same price India is paying.

Bangladesh will seek to retain the zero duty benefit and the market access for five years after its graduation to a developing country as the pandemic took a heavy toll on the nation’s economy.

Bangladesh yesterday approved the Oxford University-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for emergency use, paving the way for importing the vaccine from Serum Institute of India.

Bangladesh has approved the Oxford University-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India, paving the way for bringing the vaccine for emergency use.

Abdur Rahim*, a private tutor in Dhaka, thought his life had finally stabilised after two decades of hard work. With a steady income, he could afford a place in the capital and sustain his family.

When the Covid-19 outbreak led to a closure of educational institutions in late March, students, guardians and teachers alike speculated that the disruption would last a few months.

Although Bangladesh achieved food security and improved access to food, eight percent of the households where the urban poor live still go to sleep with empty stomachs, reveals a government survey.

Bangladesh is on track to graduate to a developing country from a least developed one as a UN body estimates that the country’s scores in all three criteria would be much higher from the graduation threshold next year.

Mizanur Rahman stood still, gazing with awe from the bank of the Padma river at the specialised floating crane laying down the last span on the mega structure yesterday.

At precisely 12:02pm came the glorious moment. The final span of the Padma bridge was in its place and a giant step was made towards the realisation of a long-cherished dream.

After the government announced 21 stimulus packages involving more than Tk 1,21,000 crore to tackle the pandemic fallout, 39.23 percent of the total amount or Tk 47,615 crore was disbursed till October 31, according to a report of the finance ministry.

The temperature drop over the last few days means that the season of cold and flu is around the corner.

With Bangladesh securing nearly 100 million doses of Covid vaccine from two sources by next year, the most pertinent question now is who will be vaccinated first.

Bangladesh is going to compete in the second review of a UN panel next year for graduation to a developing country from a least developed one as it met all the three criteria for getting out of the LDC bloc.

In the face of criticisms, the government is going to evaluate its economic rescue scheme announced six months ago to tackle the fallout of the pandemic.

The government’s preparations for tackling a possible spike in Covid-19 cases in the coming winter appear to be limited to rhetoric as efforts to control virus transmission and ensure treatment are still far from satisfactory.

The government has decided to administer Covid-19 vaccines to all the citizens free of cost once those are procured.

A nuclear reactor and a steam generator, the key components of the first unit of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, arrived in Bangladesh yesterday, paving the way for completing the main phase of the mega project.

House help Salma Khatun and her rickshaw-puller husband Forkan Ali saved their hard-earned money for the future of their two daughters.

Bangladesh’s refusal to co-fund the trials of a Chinese Covid-19 vaccine has narrowed down its options for getting vaccines when they will be ready, experts said.