On Friday, 12 November 2021
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya delivered the inaugural speech on a conference titled Preparing Public Leaders in South Asia for a Post-Pandemic World
The conference was organised by
Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA)
South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance, North South University, Dhaka
JSW School of Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
Mr M A Mannan, MP, Hon’ble Minister, Ministry of Planning, Government of Bangladesh was present as the Chief Guest in the conference
The inaugural speech of Dr Debapriya was titled
Post-Pandemic South Asia: Six Lessons for the Policy Actors
The six lessons were the following-
- Public Policy Actors need to remember that all national issues are global nowadays
- Socio-economic impact of the pandemic disproportionately fell on the ‘left behind’ people-some were ‘pushed behind’
- Public policy for delivering direct cash transfer and food support was constrained by lack of fiscal space and institutional handicaps
- Absence of a universal social protection scheme, left citizens vulnerable to the pandemic
- The pandemic spurred data innovation and digital initiatives in the countries
- Regional cooperation plays supportive role in dealing with national issues
