POBNEWS24, Dhaka April 26, 2025 : Professor Mostafizur Rahman, a distinguished fellow and prominent economist at the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a research organization, believes that the current war situation between India and Pakistan is not good for Bangladesh. Although the tension between the two countries is not a major cause of concern for Bangladesh’s business, trade and investment, it is a concern. Because the possibility of a war between the two nuclear-armed countries may not be limited to them.
He expressed this opinion while answering a question as the chief guest at the Debate for Democracy student debate competition organized by the Film Development Corporation (FDC) at an auditorium in the capital on Saturday. He said that the India-Pakistan tension will have a negative impact on regional cooperation. SAARC has not been very active for a long time. The chief advisor to the interim government of Bangladesh is trying to increase regional cooperation through SAARC. In the meantime, tensions have arisen between India and Pakistan. He hopes that this time too, like in the past, the crisis can be averted through talks.
Mostafizur Rahman said that Bangladesh imports a large amount of goods from India. Compared to imports, exports to that country are less. Bangladesh gets duty-free benefits for exporting goods to the Indian market. It took Bangladesh 40 years to reach one billion dollars in exports to that country. It reached two billion dollars in the next 7 years. If India focuses more on the military sector in the current situation, then their trade may be affected, which may also affect Bangladesh.
He said that the promise of investment is not the last word. To bring in investment, a supportive environment must be ensured. He believes that if the elections are delayed for any reason, it can create uncertainty in investment.
The team from Eden College, which was in the role of the opposition party, won the debate competition called Chhaya Sangsad on the topic ‘The recent investment conference has created possibilities for foreign investment’. The debaters from Dhaka College were on the government team. The event was presided over by Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron, chairman of Debate for Democracy.
