Mustafa K. Mujeri – författare

The book provides a comprehensive conceptual understanding covering major challenges and pathways to progressively promote inclusive development in Bangladesh.

Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has achieved significant economic growth and social progress, but the benefits have not been shared equitably across all groups in society, and there is the demand that inclusive development should be at the core of the country’s development agenda. Analysing inclusive development in Bangladesh, the authors present it as synonymous with improving the well-being of all individuals in a comprehensive manner along with upholding the principles of equity and justice. The book shows that the multidimensionality of inclusive development facilitates the participation of all in society in development through enhancing capabilities and ensuring equal opportunities. The analysis highlights social investments in specific concerns of the marginalised and disadvantaged groups and unequal structural forces that compel the state to remain biased towards the rich and consequent ‘elite capture’ of the state in Bangladesh. Arguing that Bangladesh has moved closer towards applying the inclusive development tenets in policy making, the book’s findings show that the challenge is the absence of any generic formula to ensure that the country is moving towards a more inclusive development path.

A valuable contribution to the study of Bangladesh’s changing dynamics of political, economic and social configurations and development economics, the book will be of interest to researchers in the fields of economics, Asian studies and development studies.

The book provides a comprehensive conceptual understanding covering major challenges and pathways to progressively promote inclusive development in Bangladesh.

Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has achieved significant economic growth and social progress, but the benefits have not been shared equitably across all groups in society, and there is the demand that inclusive development should be at the core of the country’s development agenda. Analysing inclusive development in Bangladesh, the authors present it as synonymous with improving the well-being of all individuals in a comprehensive manner along with upholding the principles of equity and justice. The book shows that the multidimensionality of inclusive development facilitates the participation of all in society in development through enhancing capabilities and ensuring equal opportunities. The analysis highlights social investments in specific concerns of the marginalised and disadvantaged groups and unequal structural forces that compel the state to remain biased towards the rich and consequent ‘elite capture’ of the state in Bangladesh. Arguing that Bangladesh has moved closer towards applying the inclusive development tenets in policy making, the book’s findings show that the challenge is the absence of any generic formula to ensure that the country is moving towards a more inclusive development path.

A valuable contribution to the study of Bangladesh’s changing dynamics of political, economic and social configurations and development economics, the book will be of interest to researchers in the fields of economics, Asian studies and development studies.

This book explores the diverse experience of Bangladesh’s development over the last fifty years and provides systematic explanations of its success in socioeconomic development.  It also assesses future trends on the basis of past experiences. It is widely acknowledged that Bangladesh provides one of the most striking examples in the study of present day development along with rapid growth and catching up. The analysis highlights the development traps that Bangladesh faced during its journey and the ones that may have to be faced in the coming decades in order to move towards prosperity. The book asserts that explaining Bangladesh’s development is not for the simpleminded; any single mono-causal explanation for Bangladesh’s development is bound to fall down in the face of reality.  This book will be of interest to academics, students, policy makers and development practitioners especially in developing countries—in particular in South Asia and Bangladesh.

The analysis highlights several distinct characteristics of Bangladesh’s structural transformation including changes in value added, trade, employment, productivity, formal-informal jobs, and opportunities for low-skilled workers. The book suggests that the manufacturing sector could not create the required number of jobs and generate rapid absolute and relative productivity gains in the Bangladesh economy. Although the services sector has largely led output and employment growth, servicessubsectors with strong labour absorptive capacity have low average productivity. Hence, growth-enhancing structural transformation led by these subsectors is likely to be less dynamic than required for rapid employment-creating growth in the economy.

The book’s analysis on COVID-19 and cyclone Amphan shows that an integrated disaster and development paradigm is needed for Bangladesh. An inclusive and health and well-being focused structural transformation presents the pathway to advance the people-centred approach to development in Bangladesh through both vulnerability reduction and investments in sustainable development that would offset both known and unknown disaster threats. The key for Bangladesh is to skillfully manage the ‘developer’s dilemma’ of achieving both structural transformation in terms of large productivity gains and inclusive growth for reducing poverty and rising inequalities. This book is relevant to students, academicians and development practitioners and others interested in contemporary development.