DHAKA — Cox’s Bazar’s development is no longer a purely national issue but is now part of a global perspective, directly tied to the Bay of Bengal economy and regional politics, speakers said at a roundtable Saturday.
The sustainable future of Bangladesh depends on five pillars in Cox’s Bazar: tourism, security, environment, education and infrastructure, they said.
The remarks came at a roundtable titled “The Ebb and Flow of Cox’s Bazar’s Development Journey: Problems, Possibilities and Global Perspectives,” held Saturday afternoon at the International Mother Language Institute in the capital.
The Cox’s Bazar Community Alliance (CCAD) organized the dialogue. Politicians, economists, engineers, educators, lawyers, administrative officials and human-rights workers took part.
Speakers said Cox’s Bazar is now a global hub, an important center for international business, tourism, blue economy and geopolitical cooperation. The development of Cox’s Bazar is no longer a question of possibility, they said, but a question of executing a strategic plan.
Hamidur Rahman Azad, former member of parliament for Cox’s Bazar-2 (Pekua-Kutubdia) and assistant secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami, took part in the discussion. Other participants included Mohammad Shahiduzzaman, former MP for Cox’s Bazar-3 (Sadar, Ramu) and a BNP executive committee member; Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, executive director of the COAST Foundation; Fakrul Islam, a professor at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology; and M.M. Suja Uddin, organizing secretary of NCP.
Azad said Cox’s Bazar has much to offer the state — vast natural resources, a marine economy and a population of potential. This development must be lifted above politics and carried out with the active participation of citizens and local leadership, he said.
Calling for a united resistance against political corruption, Azad said the future Cox’s Bazar will be the lifeblood of Bangladesh’s economy and the main center of the South Asian economy. The technology-friendly potential of Cox’s Bazar’s minerals must be put to use, he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report