International Affairs Advisor to the Prime Minister Dr Gowher Rizvi on Tuesday said the development for sustainable growth has to happen within a democratic framework.
He made the comment while speaking at a symposium titled “Realizing Vision 2041: Our Roles and Responsibilities”, organized by the Bangladesh Administrative Services Association (Basa) at the BCS (Administration) Academy.
Speaking as the chief guest at the symposium, Dr Rizvi said: “Development wins when everybody benefits from it. Development benefits must be distributed equally among everyone within a democratic framework. Distribution of development benefits and democracy go together, and both are important for sustainability.”
Emphasizing on helping people who were falling behind, he said the country's vision of transforming into a developed nation by 2041 would not be possible without taking into account success for everybody.
The symposium was organized to provide a conceptual understanding of Vision 2041, the Perspective Plan 2022-2041, and the Delta Plan 2100 to inform young bureaucrats of their roles and responsibilities, challenges and opportunities in achieving the vision.
Furthermore, the symposium aimed to stimulate their analytical thinking process and motivate them to effectively lead the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Principal Coordinator of SDG Affairs to the Prime Minister's Office Md Abdul Kalam Azad was present as special guest at the event.
Speaking about Vision 2041, Azad explained how SDGs are aligned with the 7th Fiscal Year Plan (2016-2020) and the National Development Plan of Bangladesh.
He said in order to graduate to an upper middle income country by 2031 and raise Bangladesh's per capita income to $5,600, and subsequently graduate to a high income country by 2041 with a per capita income of $12,500, the government needs to prioritize developing 10 key sectors.
The sectors are agriculture, trade and industry, health and education, infrastructure, productivity, innovative knowledge economy, efficient social safety net, environment, gender equality, and governance.
"We have some challenges ahead including resource mobilization, skill development and quality education, strength international development cooperation and building effective partnership, natural disasters and climate change, Rohingya refugee crisis, as well as SDG localization by government, INGOs, and NGOs," he added.
Among others, Macquarie University Professor Shawkat Alam and Senior Lecturer George F Tomossy, and Basa President Helal Uddin Ahmed, also spoke at the event.
