The fact that Bangladesh has announced record levels of power generation, yet citizens, especially in rural areas, continue to suffer daily load‑shedding lasting hours, is a contradiction that is not just frustrating but one that raises serious questions about transparency.
The question is very simple: If generation capacity is at historic highs, why are so many households, and indeed businesses, schools, and hospitals, still not reaping the benefits and are instead deprived of power?
The answer, unfortunately, appears to be the all-too-familiar gap between numbers on paper and realities on the ground.
Installed capacity does not always translate into available electricity. The war in Iran and the subsequent fuel shortages in addition to transmission bottlenecks and general inefficiencies mean that much of the promised power never reaches consumers.
However, what is more aggravating is that instead of candidly acknowledging these constraints, authorities continue to highlight headline figures that mask the lived experience of citizens.
This culture of opacity, one that Bangladesh has historically been guilty of perpetuating, must end.
Our future, be that in the power sector or any other, depends not only on growth but more so on credibility. Citizens deserve clear information: How much power is actually being generated, how much is being delivered, and why outages persist despite capacity claims.
It is this historic lack of transparency that has contributed to eroding trust.
Moving forward, what the authorities must recognize is that investment in transmission, distribution, and fuel security is as critical as generation. Equally important is honest communication with the public.
Power cuts amid record generation expose a credibility crisis. We cannot build power resilience on inflated numbers. It must be built on facts and accountability.