Economy expands 50pc in 8 years, but jobs grow only 11pc

Business Desk :

Over the past eight years until fiscal year 2023-24, the country’s economy grew by more than 50 percent, painting a rosy picture of performance by major sectors, while the expansion did not translate into job creation.
Employment grew by only 11 percent during the period, making a clear case of “jobless growth”, a term that economists have been using in recent years to refer to the paradox of growing gross domestic product (GDP) without much job creation.
“Our growth failed to meet the demand for jobs,” said Abdullah Nadvi, research director at non-governmental research organisation Unnayan Shamannay, during a recent discussion on employment challenges in Dhaka.
He said that although the country’s economic performance has been lauded globally, it has not translated into the expected rise in job opportunities.
In his presentation at the event, held at the organisation’s office, Nadvi pointed out that while GDP had grown fivefold, employment had increased by barely a fifth of that.
“For this reason, Bangladesh’s economic growth is referred to as ‘jobless growth’,” he said.
Nadvi also talked about the widely held belief that foreign direct investment (FDI) leads to huge job creation, calling it overly optimistic.
He said that between 2009-10 and 2020-21, the country received around $51 billion in FDI, which generated only about 5.46 lakh jobs.
In contrast, domestic investment during the same period stood at $106 billion and created more than 28 lakh jobs, he noted.
“This shows that FDI alone cannot solve the country’s employment challenges.