Reforms fail at execution stage, says Debapriya
Economist Debapriya Bhattacharya has said Bangladesh’s key challenge lies not in drafting reform plans, but in executing them effectively, warning that weak implementation, poor coordination and vested interests could stall progress.
He made the remarks at the 9th South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM) Annual Economic Conference in Dhaka on Sunday, during a session titled “Romancing the Reform: The Bangladesh Story.”
“Designing reforms is relatively easy; delivering them is the real challenge,” said Debapriya, a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
He said that while “reform” has become a widely used term in Bangladesh, meaningful change depends on strong political will and capable institutions.
Describing reform as a “romance”, he said it is a process shaped by hope, setbacks and resilience, and influenced by leadership, context and public perception.
According to him, reforms are often triggered by crises, external pressures, inflation, weak institutions and corruption. However, their success depends on scope, sequencing, pace and ownership.
Debapriya noted that Bangladesh has undertaken several reforms since independence, including state-building initiatives, the introduction of value-added tax (VAT), exchange rate adjustments, expansion of social safety nets and digitalisation.
However, he said progress has slowed in recent years due to what he described as a “kleptocratic legacy”, marked by corruption, misuse of public resources and weakened institutions.
He pointed to collusion among political, bureaucratic and business interests as a major obstacle to structural reform, often reinforcing crony practices.
Many reform initiatives, he added, begin with momentum but lose direction due to a lack of coherent economic vision, weak coordination and limited stakeholder engagement.
“There is no real-time accountability mechanism for citizens to track implementation,” he said.
Debapriya also expressed concern over recent amendments to the Bank Resolution Act, saying provisions that may allow former owners to regain control of troubled banks indicate a return of oligarchic influence.
He cited the banking sector as a key example of reform challenges, noting that rising non-performing loans remain a persistent problem, while efforts to restructure weak banks have faced political resistance.
“The government has revealed the names of major defaulters, but the real question is what to do with banks that have effectively collapsed,” he said.
He added that options such as allowing weak banks to fail or merging them with stronger institutions have not progressed due to political and institutional constraints.
Instead, authorities appear to favour grouping troubled banks and injecting capital to cover financial gaps.
Debapriya urged the government to maintain reform commitments, reduce political interference in the banking sector, strengthen the autonomy of the Bangladesh Bank, improve revenue mobilisation, rationalise subsidies and ensure more efficient public spending.
He also called for real-time data access and stronger public oversight to ensure effective implementation of reforms.
