Bangladesh seeks to attain middle-income status by 2021, the 50th anniversary of its independence. To accelerate growth enough to do so, it will need to undergo a structural transformation that will change the geography of economic production and urbanization. Critical to its transformation will be the creation of a globally competitive urban space, defined here as a space that has the capacity to innovate, is well connected internally and to external markets, and is livable (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD 2006; World Bank 2010). This study identifies what is unique about Bangladeshs process of urbanization and examines the implications for economic growth. Through the lens of Bangladeshs most successful industry, the garment sector, it describes the drivers of and constraints to urban competitiveness. Based on the findings, it provides policy directions to strengthen the competitiveness of Bangladeshs urban space in ways that will allow Bangladesh to reach middle-income status by 2021.
This report seeks to generate evidence on the binding constraints to shifting Bangladesh’s current economic strategy to one aiming at green growth.
Nepal is undergoing two momentous transformations-from a rural to an urbanizing economy and from a unitary to a federal state. This book aims at understanding the first of these two transitions: Nepal's journey toward becoming a predominantly urban economy.
Bangladesh’s Ready-Made Garments (RMG) industry remains the backbone of its industrial growth in the coming decades. This paper sought to examine its environmental compliance landscape in terms of the incentives and barriers RMG entrepreneurs face.