Thinking Aloud: Volume IX, Issue 5: October 1, 2022

The October 2022 issue of Thinking Aloud presents articles on labour market challenges, child marriage, FDI, and industrial labour in Bangladesh. The first-page article titled “Policies and strategies to address labour market challenges in Bangladesh” outlines the labour market challenges in Bangladesh. The labour market in Bangladesh faces several challenges, including slow job creation, stagnant female labour force participation rate, high youth NEET rate and youth unemployment rate, and skill mismatches, among others. The article further narrates five sets of policies and strategies to address those challenges. They are undertaking pro-employment policies, long-term investments in job creation, developing market-relevant skills, strengthening labour market institutions, and migration policies. The second and third pages of this issue present three more articles. The article titled “How to preclude the incessant prevalence of child marriage in Bangladesh?” contextualises the reasons behind the persistent presence of child marriage, along with its dire consequences, and the way forward for the nation. The article observes the necessity of an institutionalised approach to addressing social norms in addition to direct interventions. The article, titled “Mobilizing FDI for SEZs in Bangladesh”, sheds light on the ongoing effort of the government of Bangladesh to attract FDI and construct SEZs as destinations of FDI. The article recommends speedy implementation of SEZs, exploring non-traditional sources of investments, including climate-smart investment, compliance with SDGs, and action-focused, time-bound and targeted investment promotion plan to mobilise FDI. The article, titled “The challenges facing the industrial labour of Bangladesh”, discusses the state of the industrial workers in Bangladesh, focusing on minimum wage, occupational hazards, absence of social protection, rising social and economic inequality, and the underlying factors behind these issues. The article stresses the low standard of living experienced by the industrial workers and the inclusion of workers in the policymaking process to mitigate the challenges. The fourth page draws attention to the events that took place in September 2022.