Towards a sustainable economy

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were introduced by the United Nations (UN) for all member nations with a total of 17 goals and 169 targets to be achieved between 2016 and 2030. The recent pandemic has presented more challenges to achieving the UN’s SDGs. This book examines Bangladesh’s ascendancy in socio-economic terms and the prospects of Bangladesh overcoming the challenges to become a higher-middle-income nation by 2030.

This book traces the transformation of Bangladesh from 1996 through 2020 and examines various factors contributing to its success from rural economy, external support, manufacturing, and structural transformation to energy consumption. This book also looks at the challenges and opportunities for Bangladesh as the Fourth Industrial Revolution unfolds and as climate change, to which Bangladesh is highly vulnerable, escalates.

This book will be a useful reference document for those who are interested in gaining more insights into inclusive growth and sustainable development from the case study of Bangladesh.

Moazzem Hossain has taught at Griffith University, Australia, since 1990 and he holds an adjunct associate professorial position presently in the Department of Business Strategy and Innovation (BSI), Griffith Business School at Griffith University, Australia. He was the inaugural Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (SMR) Professorial Fellow at University of Hull, UK, in 2000. Currently he is the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Skill Enrichment and Technology (USET), Narayangonj, Bangladesh.

Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad is widely known at home and abroad as a renowned economist. He was the founding chairman of Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad (BUP). He is currently the chairman of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) and the Dhaka School of Economics (DScE). He was the elected president of the Bangladesh Economic Association (BEA) for three consecutive terms (2002-2010).

Mazharul M Islam has been working as a Faraday Institute Research Fellow at the Department of Chemistry of the Cardiff University, UK, since 2021.