My experiences convinced me that Singapore's greatest achievement lies neither in its skyline nor in its wealth. It lies in how it develops its people. That is why, whenever Bangladesh debates education reform, my thoughts return to Singapore.
As the prime banking regulator, Bangladesh Bank should reconsider this directive. At the bare minimum, it can remove SME loans from it, just like consumer loans were omitted. Ideally, scrapping the regulation altogether and replacing it with a policy rate cut would be a better way to bring down lending rates.
History has placed South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region at the centre of 21st-century global transformation. The region's future lies not in choosing between competing powers but in pursuing inclusive modernization, strengthening regional partnerships and leveraging the unique strengths of individual nations
Allowing foreign operators to participate in outward remittances -- under a controlled and bank-intermediated framework -- could be a game-changing policy shift.
The more important question is whether technology and outcomes should be treated as equivalent. Installing thousands of surveillance cameras is not the same as creating a safe society.
Engagement with China is presented as proof of resistance against Western dominance. Good relations with India become synonymous with regional stability. Foreign policy becomes a performance of political identity rather than a framework for advancing long-term national interests.
Bangladesh needs emergency protocols that operate before photographs go viral, independent technical review of every national question paper, public disclosure of examination failures, and a transparent remedy for affected candidates.
The recent closure of Ad-din Hospital in Bangladesh illustrates how policymakers sometimes impose extreme sanctions without considering proportional alternatives.
Why should this matter to Bangladeshi readers? The future of high-performance computing will likely be led by the United States and China.
If the Special Marriage Act can first be modernized and made genuinely functional, the more difficult conversation -- extending that same civil framework -- becomes conceivable. Until then, it remains a conversation without legal ground to stand on.
This history matters for one simple reason -- the corridor China proposed in Beijing in June to the Bangladeshi Prime Minister is the same idea, with the same starting point in Kunming, with the same logic, but without India.
What started as a protest became politics. What was once dismissed as extreme is now the subject of international summits. The questions Green activists were asking 50 years ago -- how do we live within the limits of this planet, and who pays when we do not -- are still the most important questions today.
The ceasefire has created an opportunity. Whether the parties seize it will depend not only on the negotiators in the room but also on political leaders willing to accept outcomes short of their maximalist positions. Transforming that opportunity into lasting peace remains the region's greatest challenge.
A country becomes innovative not when its officials announce innovation, but when its inventors no longer need to beg them for the right to build.
Bangladesh now has the diagnostic tools, the legal framework, and crucially, the public honesty about the scale of the task that previous governments lacked. What it does with that foundation over the next two to three years, not the next two to three months, is the real story still being written.
The government and private sector have an opportunity to work together to translate the positive policy signals contained in the budget into tangible investment outcomes. If we do so successfully, Bangladesh will not only attract foreign capital but also encourage successful members of the Bangladeshi diaspora to invest their expertise, resources, and networks in the country's future.
