Bangladesh made tremendous progress under Sheikh Hasina: Report

Dhaka [Bangladesh], December 17 : The last 14 years of the Awami League Government under Sheikh Hasina has been transformative for Bangladesh, reported Asian Lite International.
Within this relatively short period of time, Bangladesh has gone from being a low-income and least-developed country to a lower-middle-income-developing country.
From pulling millions of people out of the clutches of poverty and exhibiting over 6.6 per cent average economic growth to sheltering over a million displaced Rohingyas from Myanmar, the days of Bangladesh being in the headlines only for natural disasters are long gone.
According to the IMF, Bangladesh is now the 43rd largest economy in the world in terms of nominal GDP while its position is 32nd in terms of PPP. It is also included in the list of the top 10 fastest-growing economies in the world, reported Asian Lite International.
A projection by PriceWaterHouseCoopers foretells that Bangladesh will be the 28th largest economy by 2030. From ensuring sanitation facilities for all, to drastically reducing maternal child and infant mortality rates, the development success stories of Bangladesh are endless as is often touted in the WHO case studies.
To take Bangladesh's growth and development to the next level, the Awami League government enacted the Bangladesh Economic Zones Act in 2010 establishing economic zones in potential areas to expand export-oriented industries and attract foreign investment.
Whereas previously the conversation surrounding Bangladesh was dominated by aid and donations, now it is more about the country's remarkable transformation and the tale of empowering women, bringing hope to developing countries on poverty and extreme poverty reduction, reported Asian Lite International.
With the agenda for the promotion of universal and quality education, the Awami League government formulated the national education policy in 2010.
To improve the quality of education, the total allocation for education was increased from USD 1460 million to over USD 6500 million.
The Awami League government has played a key role in policy and strategy development and implementation of health and nutrition interventions. Today, Bangladesh's life expectancy is higher than other countries in the region, reported Asian Lite International.
Bangladesh has made a stupendous success in pharmaceutical production. Drugs manufactured in Bangladesh are being exported to different countries after meeting 98 per cent of the domestic demand, reported Asian Lite International.
Since 2009, the Awami League government in the domestic market has created 6.3 million new jobs and the number of working women has increased to nearly 20 million.
Power and energy are the main priority sectors of the current Awami League government. Back in January 2009 when they took office, the power generation capacity of the country was 4942 MW. The targets were to scaled up power generation to 24000 MW by 2021 and ensure electric supply to all at an affordable price.
Within 10 years, the number of power plants has increased to 180 from 27 and power generation capacity has now increased three times, reported Asian Lite International.
Oil and gas exploration activities have been given a boost by the setting up of a gas development fund which has assisted Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited (BAPEX) in exploring oil and gas.
In the Communication sector, the emphasis of the Awami League government has been on laying out integrated modes of transport combining road, rail and waterways easing transport congestion.
Safe mode of transportation is another area of focus. The inauguration of Padma Bridge has made life easier for people of Southern areas of Bangladesh, reported Asian Lite International.
The government has developed sea, river and land ports for facilitating export and internal trade. The country's 3rd sea port at Payra was developed and opened in August 2016 by prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
10 growth-generating projects identified as "mega projects" have been brought under the special supervision of Prime Minister Hasina for rapid implementation.
As a result of her initiative in climate and environment, prime minister Sheikh Hasina was awarded the United Nations' highest environmental accolade in 2015, "The champion of the Earth" and under her leadership, the Bangladesh constitution was amended in 2011 to include a constitutional directive to the states to protect the environment and natural resources for current and future generations
The Government of Sheikh Hasina has embarked on the mission to build a digital Bangladesh to transform Bangladesh into a technologically advanced nation and utilise the usage of information and communication technology (ICT) as a tool for development and sustainability. The country has come a long way today with more than 50 million people having access to mobile phones.