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BDF 2020 to focus on 8th FYP, SDGs


Published : 27 Jan 2020 08:01 PM | Updated : 07 Sep 2020 02:33 PM

Economic Relations Division of the Government of Bangladesh is going to organize its flagship event- the ‘Bangladesh Development Forum’ (BDF) on 29 and 30 January at the Bangabandhu International Conference Center of the capital.

Prime Minister of the Government of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina, MP has kindly consented to inaugurate the event as chief guest. Finance Minister Mr. A H M Mustafa Kamal, FCA, MP will chair the inaugural session. 

BDF 2020 has been dedicated to the Birth Centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

ERD organised a pre-event press briefing at the NEC conference room on Monday. 

ERD Secretary, Monowar Ahmed and other senior officials concerned were present in the briefing.

They said  BDF is a high-level multi-stakeholder participatory forum, periodically hosted by the ERD, Ministry of Finance, which provides a platform for effective dialogues among development partners, national and international NGOs, development think-tanks, development practitioners, leaders from business and industry. 

"It creates opportunity for building the partnership among the stakeholders for identified implementation challenges and policy or resource gaps", they said.  

The slogan of this year's BDF is “Effective Partnership for Sustainable Development”. 

Senior Vice President of JICA Mr. Junichi Yamada, Vice President of World Bank for the South Asian region Mr. Hartwig Schafer, Vice President of Asian Development Bank Mr Shixin Chen and many other national and international high-level delegates will attend the event. 

The keynote session of the forum will be devoted to ‘Effective Partnership for Implementing the 8th Five Year Plan Aiming towards Achieving SDGs’. This will be followed by eight working sessions themed on: Private Sector Engagement and Trade Facilitation, Partnership for Climate Change and its Financing, Innovative Financing for a Self-reliant Bangladesh,  Rural Transformation: Creating Opportunities for All, Health Services: Inclusive Delivery Options,  Energy Security for Sustainable Growth, Sustainable Cities: Services and Protection for the Vulnerable and Quality Education for All: Preparing for 4th Industrial Revolution.

The Forum will be held at an opportune time when Bangladesh is experiencing exponential growth in all socio-economic parameters under the leadership of the Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.  The country is at the final stage of implementing its 7th Five Year Plan while it is also formulating the 8th Five Year Plan. The country is also committed to implement the UN mandated Sustainable Development Goals. At the same time, the government is working relentlessly to become a developed and prosperous nation by 2041. 

In this context, the forum will provide an ideal platform for assessing the progress made in implementing the 7th FYP. At the same time, it would also provide an opportunity for a wide ranging consultation for formulating the upcoming 8th Five Year Plan. 

The upcoming BDF 2020 would also provide a stage for evaluating the country’s progress in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals. It would also provide a platform for assessing the progress as well as the future development paths of the country’s key priority areas. 

The BDF 2020 will come up with an outcome document spelling out necessary joint steps in each of the six thematic areas. 

The previous edition of BDF was held in January 2018 and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. BDF 2018 brought together about 700 delegates representing Bangladesh government and various development partners, including UN, World Bank, Asian Development Bank and others. 

The two-day event focused on the implementation review of Bangladesh’s 7th Five Year Plan (7FYP) along with the resource and policy gaps in attaining the SDGs.