In order to accelerate the coordination activities for the publication of National Human Development Report (NHDR), a meeting was held on September 17, 2019 at the Planning Commission in Dhaka.

The meeting on NHDR was organised by Economic Relations Division (ERD) with support of Knowledge for Development Management (K4DM) project of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Attendees included the writers’ pool and advisors’ committee, who are expecting to publish the report in 2021, on the occasion of 50 years since Bangladesh’s independence.

The report will contain information on present scenario, possible challenges, and future opportunities for human development in Bangladesh.

The meeting was chaired by Monowar Ahmed, secretary of ERD, while National Project Director of K4DM, Sultana Afroz, also additional secretary and wing chief (UN), welcomed the participants. In her small presentation she mentioned the themes of NHDR, along with the terms of reference for writers and the advisory committee. Senior officials from relevant ministries and representatives from UNDP also participated in the meeting. 

At the meeting Dr Selim Jahan, Former Director, Human Development Report Office of UNDP in New York, specified some specific topics for the report, including equality of human development, present scenario in Bangladesh, disparity of opportunity, statistics of inequality and the way forward, adding that the NHDR can be a useful policy document. The participants engaged in fruitful discussions about the thematic areas of NHDR. 

In his concluding remarks, Monowar Ahmed, secretary of ERD, appreciated the eminent participants for their presence in the meeting and directed the way forward of the work.

The NHDR was first released in 1992 in Bangladesh. Knowledge for Development Management (K4DM) Project is a joint initiative of the Government of Bangladesh and UNDP Bangladesh. The project is being implemented by Economic Relations Division (ERD), Ministry of Finance since 2012. It aims to promote and facilitate, a knowledge based decision making process through its planned interventions.