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Bangladesh finally gets nod to graduate from LDC

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The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has approved resolution to allow Bangladesh to graduate to the developing country grouping from least developed country (LDC) category 45 years after it was included in the category.

The UNGA adopted the historic resolution at its 76 session, said a press release from the finance ministry.

“This is a historic milestone to the development journey of Bangladesh,” said Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in the statement.

This outstanding achievement has come through the visionary and determined leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, he said.

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“This is the reflection of the progress for more than decade. People of all walks of life is part of this success,” he said.

Born following bloody liberation war with abject poverty and food shortage, Bangladesh emerged gradually over the years proving the much-talked about hypothesis regarding Bangladesh as test case of development wrong.

When the UN included Bangladesh in the LDC group in 1975, the country’s poverty rate was 83 per cent. The rate of poverty declined over the years and it was 20.5 per cent in 2019-20 before the pandemic devastated jobs and income opportunities for many.

Independent research organisations found that the coronavirus deteriorated poverty situation with which the government does not agree.

Earlier by the end of February this year, Bangladesh became qualified to graduate into a developing nation from an LDC and United Nations Committee for Development Policy (UN CDP) recommended the graduation of Bangladesh.

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Bangladesh is now scheduled to officially become a developing country in 2026 as the UN committee recommended that the country should get five years, instead of three, to prepare for the transition due to the impact of the Covid-19 on its economy. 

The country has met, for the second time, all the three eligibility criteria for the graduation involving per capita income, human assets index (HAI), and economic and environmental vulnerability index (EVI).

The UN CDP in its second triennial review assessed the economy of Bangladesh and found a strong fulfillment of all three required conditions for the graduation.

Bangladesh was well ahead in the gross national income (GNI) criterion: its per capita income was $1,827 in 2019 against the threshold of $1,222.

In the HAI criterion, the country’s score stood at 75.4 points, well above the requirement of 66. In the EVI, a country’s score has to be less than 32. Bangladesh’s score was 27.3.

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Bajloor Rashid Elected Chairman, Mezanur Rahman Elected Vice Chairman of Progressive Life Insurance

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In a recently held board meeting of Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited, a renowned listed insurance company in the country’s capital market, Bajloor Rashid MBE, was elected as Chairman and Mezanur Rahman as Vice Chairman.
The formal election took place at the 203rd board meeting of the company held on Sunday, 29 June 2025, for the term 2025-2026.

Bajloor Rashid MBE, is a distinguished and successful businessman and social worker. He is also one of the founding shareholders of Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited. In the early 1980s, he established himself as an ambitious young entrepreneur in the growing catering industry. Notably, from 2006 to 2012, he served successfully as the President of the UK-based association of catering restaurant owners.

On the other hand, the newly elected Vice Chairman, Mezanur Rahman, is an established and successful businessman. He is a founding director and former Vice Chairman of Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited. He holds a degree in Architecture from Leeds Metropolitan University, United Kingdom. He is also actively involved with various humanitarian and social organizations.

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Progressive Life Insurance successfully settles claims totaling nearly Tk 40 crore in 2024

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Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited (PLICL) settled down insurance claims of approximately 40 (forty) crore taka in 2024 which has fortified clients’ confidence on the company. Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited entered 25th year on 6 January 2025. PLICL was founded on 6 January in the year 2000. Discussion programs, slicing a cake, offering dua and a colourful rally were organized to mark the company’s founding anniversary on Monday at PLICL corporate office in the capital. 

The rally moved around different parts of Dhaka city and the officials of the company held a gathering in front of PLICL head office on Monday morning at 10:30 am. 

PLICL Chairman (Acting) M Shoeb Chowdhury joined the 25th founding anniversary celebration virtually as the chief guest. M Shoeb Chowdhury said that the top management of Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited has been able to uphold the dream cherished by expatriate Bangladeshis whose contribution led to the establishment of the company. Shoeb Chowdhury laid emphasis on working with unity and solidarity for the company’s further advancement and to generate many more success stories.

PLICL Executive Committee Chairman Mezanur Rahman , Chairman of Audit Committee Dr. Md. Jamil Sharif, PhD, FCMA and former entrepreneur Prodeep Sen also attended the program. The event was presided over by the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Md. Saidul Amin. The 25th founding anniversary of Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited was celebrated in 32 districts and divisional offices across Bangladesh. Senior officials of the insurance company expressed hope and determination to transform PLICL into a top notch institution in days to come. The speakers at the program stated that Progressive Life Insurance Company Limited appointed 1200 development officers in 2024 and training courses have been initiated to upgrade their skills.

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PLICL Deputy Managing Director (DMD) Mohammad Hossain Shaheed Suhrawardy, Senior DMD Shahjahan Azadi, Company Secretary Abdullah Al Mansur and Senior DMD Jaseem Uddin Prodhan addressed the program among other dignitaries.

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Banks see rising deposits for higher interest rates

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Bank deposits grew in the third quarter of 2024 as many people were encouraged by rising interest rates to park their money at commercial lenders.

In the July-September period of the previous calendar year, bank deposits rose 7 percent year-on-year to Tk 18.25 lakh crore, with bank branches in rural areas registering higher deposit growth compared to their urban counterparts.

The significant hike in interest rates was a key driver behind the growth in bank deposits, said Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director and chief executive of Mutual Trust Bank PLC.

Besides, banks have carried out a lot of campaigns to attract depositors, he added while informing that they expect the uptrend of deposits to continue.

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The weighted average interest rates on deposits rose to 5.88 percent in the July-September quarter last year from 4.55 percent during the same period of the previous year, according to data of the Bangladesh Bank.

But when comparing the April-June quarter, bank deposits declined by 0.73 percent year-on-year due to widespread unrest centring a mass movement that ousted the Awami League government on August 5.

Overall bank deposits stood at Tk 18.38 lakh crore by the end of last June.

Private commercial banks, including Islamic banks, constitute 68 percent of the total deposits at present.

However, the central bank data shows their deposits shrank 0.33 percent to Tk 12.58 lakh crore by the end of last September from Tk 12.62 lakh crore three months prior.

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The crisis ridden Islamic banks recorded the steepest decline in deposits during the July-September period. Meanwhile, state banks closely followed even though both public and private banks saw deposit growth for about one year since the end of September 2023

On the other hand, loans and advances maintained an uptick for four quarters ending with the July-September period of 2024.

Loans and advances increased by 10 percent year-on-year to Tk 16.19 lakh crore by the end of September last year.

Between June and September of 2024, loans and advances to bank borrowers grew by 1.43 percent mainly in urban areas.

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Editor : Jashim Uddin ; Publisher: Rafiqul Alam Address: Bengal Centre (6th floor), 28 Topkhana Road, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh Ph :+8802-7124586 e-mail:dailyfrontlinebd@gmail.com Copyright © 2020 Daily Frontline. Bangladesh Independent Daily.