DHAKA: Top local and foreign economists find the best solutions for Bangladesh, exploring costs and benefits of different ways of investment in a bid to make the country prosperous.

After a year engaging with researchers and Bangladeshi leaders and civil society, the Copenhagen Consensus Center (CCC) has begun publishing research from its landmark project, Bangladesh Priorities on Tuesday (March 8).

Bangladesh Priorities aims to identify which solutions will do the best for Bangladesh at the lowest cost, said a CCC press release.

Under the project of Bangladesh Priorities researchers put emphasis on building transport infrastructure or decreasing air pollution to establishing a bond market and expanding broadband for the country’s development.

Over the next two months, every week CCC will release two research papers exploring costs and benefits for different ways to invest in Bangladesh’s future.

In collaboration with BRAC, the CCC has invited 30 of the best economists from Bangladesh, the region, and the world to explore the merits and pitfalls of 78 different ways to improve Bangladesh in the areas of poverty, health, education, the environment, and others.

In May, at the conclusion of the research, an eminent panel will gather in Dhaka to deliberate over the most promising solutions for Bangladesh, the release added.

It will feature distinguished persons including Finn Kydland, Nobel Laureate in Economics, KAS Murshid, Director General of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, Selima Ahmad, President of the Bangladeshi Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Dr. Mushtaque Chowdhury, Vice Chairperson of BRAC.

The panel will issue its findings, reflect on their relevance for Bangladesh, and identify the most promising opportunities for the country.

“It’s vital that all funding spent — whether by the Bangladesh government or international donors — is directed at the solutions that have the potential to do the most good,” said CCC president Dr Bjorn Lomborg.

“Imagine if we could achieve much more good for Bangladesh with each taka in the Bangladesh budget or from donors.”

“This research provides new analysis and evidence on some of the smart choices for Bangladesh, to provide a new input for the Bangladeshi conversation about the future.”

“This should be a great help for us!” said BRAC founder and chairperson Sir Fazle Hasan Abed. “We are always thinking about prioritizing what BRAC should do.”

In early 2015, CCC began to engage with Bangladeshis to identify hundreds of potential ideas, policies, and investments for the country.

A series of twenty roundtable discussions then brought together the best minds in Bangladesh to discuss and debate effective solutions.

After thorough review and in-person interviews with leading experts of the country, researchers began to examine the costs and benefits of 78 different potential strategies.

Stakeholders from the national government to international donors to everyday citizens will have to have razor-sharp focus on the solutions that will help Bangladeshis prosper most, and at the least cost.

But the variety of challenges can seem overwhelming, and all funding and resources have limits.

BDST: 1314 HRS, MAR 09, 2016
RS/RR