At the launch of Bangladesh Reform Watch, CPD Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan, said: “After a year of reform talks, the government still doesn't know exactly what reforms are needed or where they should be implemented.”
“The government has been discussing reforms since the beginning, but we haven't seen any significant advancements. At first, more than 150 reform proposals were submitted; eventually, just 82 remained. There hasn't been any explanation on why they were cut, which reforms would be implemented first, and which are even practical,” he explains.
"Actual reform has a process. It has to go through formulation and elaboration, become a detailed executive order, ordinance, or legislation. To simply make a declaration and gather support around it is not reform," he added.
Debapriya Bhattacharya, convener of the Citizen's Platform and distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), said that while they were initially involved in the interim government's reform process, the enthusiasm for those reforms has somewhat faded.
He questioned: “Is it a lack of desire, or a conflict of interest, or something else? Has the interim government lost its way? This question is growing among us.”
Debapriya had earlier chaired the white paper committee on the economy for the interim government.
He also said: “The reform committees did not include marginalized communities, minorities, and disadvantaged people. It is possible to provide technical solutions for reform, but accountable citizen pressure is needed to implement it.”
“Bangladesh is going through a major storm. The biggest challenge in this storm is to uphold the spirit of anti-discrimination of July and to keep alive the aspiration for change. The biggest question for the current government is: Have they lost their way? What conflicts of interest have driven them away? That is the crucial question now,” he added.
Although many reform committees, commissions, and task forces have been formed, Debapriya observed that reforms eventually remained confined to political discussions.
The event’s chief guest, Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman of Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), said: “They (interim government) started in August 2024 with great aspirations and public support. Now, a little over a year later, it is essential to conduct a seamless assessment of where the character of aspirations stands.”
“I want to know one thing: when we are saying Reform Watch, will its focus be only on the declared will of the interim government, or will it try to understand the public demand?” he questioned.
Mustafizur Rahman, a distinguished fellow at CPD, said: “Many previous reform programs have not been implemented. What will happen this time is an important question to answer. However, this time we are optimistic about success. That is why we have included everyone in this program.”
The keynote presentation was presented by Towfiqul Islam Khan, senior research fellow at CPD.
Regarding Bangladesh Reform Watch's working policy, he said: “After the July mass uprising, everyone expected reforms in various fields. But how far did the reform process progress in a year? How much more will the interim government be able to advance reforms in its remaining time? To what extent will the political parties' manifestos reflect the desire for reforms? To look into these issues, Bangladesh Reform Watch is starting an initiative from the citizen platform, through which an attempt will be made to see how much the voice or participation of the people who are lagging behind in the reform process is.”
Prof Selim Raihan of the Department of Economics, University of Dhaka, and also executive director of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (Sanem), said that the discussion of reforms has been going on for a long time. But those who will reform, how much do they understand?
"There is a major issue of the capacity and will of the state and government involved here. In addition, there is the issue of the resistance of bureaucrats, businessmen, and political elites to reform. Therefore, it is also necessary to see how committed the political parties are to reforms,” he added.
Various representatives of the Citizen's Platform for SDGs presented their views on the reform programs at the seminar.
