CPD-Prothoma Public Lecture on “Economic Development and Human Progress” by Noble Laureate Dr Amartya Sen followed by the launching of Dr Sen’s book ‘Bharat: Unnayan O Banchana’ (An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions) on Monday 23 February 2015 at Krishibid Institute Complex, Farmgate, Dhaka.
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Published in The Financial Express
Human development makes economic growth sustainable
Discussion a must in democracy: Amartya Sen
FE Report
Economic development and progress in human development must complement each other to help reach the fruit of development to under as well as less privileged segments of the society, said Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen in Dhaka Monday.
And to facilitate human development, the state needs to play a critical role in ensuring education and health service to the people, he said while delivering an open lecture titled, “Economic Development and Human Progress”.
“No country in the world was successful in ensuring universal education and health services through private sector,” Sen said adding “It is the basic function of the state.”
Drawing examples of India’s growth story, he also said that India’s per capita GDP doubled over the last three decades compared to that of Bangladesh, while the life expectancy in Bangladesh is now three years more than that of India.
Sen was also of the view that the pace of economic development couldn’t be sustained in longer term, if there was no improvement in human development indicators.
“How can one expect continuous higher growth with a big chunk of the population remaining uneducated and ill-healthy workforce?” he questioned.
In his lecture, Professor Sen also shed lights on linkage between development and democracy and stressed on enlightened debate and discussion to overcome any crisis.
“Discussion is must in a democracy,” Sen said. “And it is not important to search for perfect democracy. Nothing can be perfect. So, we need to focus and work on different areas of democracy for betterment.”
The special lecture was organised as a part of the launching ceremony of the book, titled, ‘Bharat: Unnoyan O Banchana’, the Bengali translation of ‘An Uncertain Glory: India and Its Contradictions’, jointly authored by Amartya Sen & Jean Drèze.
In this book, they highlighted Bangladesh’s achievements in human and social indicators which Mr Sen mentioned in his lecture.
The book also shows that despite enjoying a higher growth rate of 8 per cent, India’s performance on most social indicators has been laclustre. In many such indicators, the country is lagging behind its poor neighbour Bangladeh.
For example, half of Indian homes remain without toilets, forcing half of all Indians to practise open defecation while only 5.0 per cent of Bangladeshis has to go for such very unhygienic practice.
“We must give credit Bangladesh for her achievement in women empowerment and immunization, and also government’s effort to improve social indices,” he said.
Leading vernacular daily Prothom Alo and local think-tank Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) jointly organised the programme.
Presided over by the CPD chairman Professor Rehman Sobhan, Editor of Prothom Alo, Matiur Rahman delivered the welcome speech. CPD executive director Mostafizur Rahman conducted the question and answer session.
Mr Sen also said that while discussion on poor state of education and health service is more important, Indian media sometimes ignore these and put emphasis on the interest of privileged sections.
Amartya Sen is now Thomas W. Lamont University Professor and Professor of Economics and Philosophy, at Harvard University. He was awarded Noble prize in economics in 1998. His ancestry is in Manikganj district of Bangladesh.
The Bengali translation of the book has been published by Kolkata-based Ananda Publishers while Dhaka-based Prothoma, a book publishing wing of Prothom Alo, becomes the sole distributor in Bangladesh.
After the lecture, the book was formally unveiled for Bangladesh market.
At the core of Sen and Dreze’s ‘An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions’ is the argument that economic growth has little to do without redistribution of its benefits to the underprivileged. They also strongly argue for public expenditure on education, healthcare and employment for better capabilities and opportunities of underprivileged sections. This will ultimately accelerate economic growth, they opine in the book.
Published in Dhaka Tribune
Amartya Sen for more investment in human development
Tribune Report
Nobel prize-winning economist Amartya Sen said in Dhaka yesterday that economic development will not be sustained without human development that depends on increased social investments such as health and education sectors.
He said India’s much lauded economic development is faltering as it fails to remove disparity between poor and reach. Sen was delivering a speech among thousands of audiences on the occasion of launching a book in Bangla version tilted “An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions” he coauthored with Jean Drèze.
Sen is currently Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University, and an OPHI advisor, while Drèze is currently an honorary Professor at the Delhi School of Economics, and Visiting Professor at the Department of Economics, Allahabad University.
The function was jointly organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue and Prothom Alo.
The Nobel laureate said over the past three and four decades, Bangladesh has made remarkable progress in human development indicators such as life expectancy, child immunisation and child mortality. “Bangladesh has pulled ahead of India despite being poorer.”
Sen said now everybody says about the private sector-led growth. “But this thinking has flaws. Look at India that saw huge economic development, led by IT, pharmaceuticals and auto parts, but failed to improve living standard of the poor.”
India’s economic growth makes no sense without recognising that human development depends on how that wealth is used and distributed, he said.
Kerala are held up as good examples of how social investments from the 60s to the 80s have reaped dividends in economic growth.
Comparing to the economic development with China, he said China has made huge social investment in the 70s so that by 1979 and their economy sustained.
In reply to a question, Sen said basic democratic rights have been undermined in the name of perfect democracy. “Don’t think that perfect democracy will come in Bangladesh within a short period of time.”
“But the bottom line is that you should have ensured freedom of speech, and the media can play big role in this regard. I do not believe that you will cry for democracy for attaining liberty.” He stressed the need for dialogue to enable democracy.
“Is democracy reducing disparity between reach and poor?” he posed the question. “It is important to talk with the poor and listen to them for bringing changes in the society.”
Published in The Daily Star
Democracy not at cost of liberty
Says Amartya Sen, praises Bangladesh’s successes in women development
Staff Correspondent
Nobel laureate Prof Amartya Sen has said liberty does not need to be curtailed for upholding democracy.
“I don’t believe that liberty has to be cut down for the sake of democracy,” Sen told a jam-packed auditorium yesterday at a public lecture organised jointly by the Bangla daily Prothom Alo and Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) at Krishibid Institute in the capital.
Prof Sen said democracy has many aspects and it cannot be perfect in any country. He also said there must be discussions on social and democratic failures to devise out ways to fix them.
Prof Sen, 82, who won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998, entered the 1,050-seat auditorium at 3:30pm, which was overflowing with so many people that the organisers had to arrange for an out-door screening of his lecture for a large number of people who were waiting outside.
He began his lecture with a reference to his latest book titled An Uncertain Glory: India and Its Contradictions, co-authored by Belgium-born Indian economist Jean Drèze. The programme was arranged on the occasion of the launching of the book’s Bangla translation titled Bharat: Unnayan O Banchana.
Referring to Bangladesh’s success in women’s economic and social development, Sen said this is an indicator of Bangladesh’s better performance than India’s despite the latter’s faster economic growth.
Per capita GDP of India was 50 percent higher than Bangladesh in 1990, whereas it is 100 percent higher now. Yet, social indicators in Bangladesh such as gender equity, women’s empowerment, mortality rate, life expectancy, vaccination etc. are remarkably better here than in India, said Sen who teaches economics and philosophy at Harvard University.
“India can learn from Bangladesh on its success in gender equity,” he said.
“In 1990, life expectancy was three years higher in India than Bangladesh. Now it is just reversed,” he said.
In his lecture, he argued that Indian rulers have never been properly accountable to the needs of the vast majority. With economic growth, large public interventions have taken place in developed countries such as China and Brazil, aiming to raise health, education and other standards so that social gains can be accelerated.
“India is an exception here and its social problems serve to drag down its economic growth prospect,” said Sen.
He said economy in the Indian subcontinent had grown almost at zero percent between 1776 and 1947. The average economic growth rate was only 0.01 percent during the years of 1900-1947. After independence, growth rate increased to three percent and remained there for many years before it shot up to eight percent. Per capita income in India however has increased seven times since 1947.
He questioned why India could not achieve progress in social indicators despite its visible success in per capita income.
He said many adults, especially women, are undernourished in India. Despite gains, extreme poverty is still a reality there and death in childbirth is all too common. Deaths caused by social prejudice are also rife in the country: as many as 6, 00,000 fetuses are aborted each year because those are female.
Sen said compared with its poorer neighbours, Bangladesh and Nepal, India’s social record is unusually grim.
The economist said private sector has played a big role in India’s economic development, but that cannot ensure education and health services to the poor.
“There is no country in the world that has developed its education and health system without the help of the government,” said Sen.
The renowned scholar, who has authored many books on social injustice and its interrelation with economy, said Bangladesh has shown how it is possible to educate and empower women.
“It was not in Bangladesh before 1971, it is absolutely Bangladesh’s success,” he said.
After his lecture, Prof Sen took questions from the audience and spent around one hour to answer them.
Prof Rehman Sobhan, chairman of CPD and long-time friend of Prof Sen, chaired the programme also addressed by Matiur Rahman, editor and publisher of Prothom Alo, and CPD Executive Director Prof Mustafizur Rahman.
Terming Sen a “true renaissance mind”, Prof Sobhan declined to say anything after what he said was such a “rich lecture”.
The book launching programme began with eminent singer Rezwana Chowdhury Bonya singing three Tagore songs.
Ananda Publishers, India published the Bangla translation of the book while Prothoma Prokashoni, Prothom Alo’s books wing, is the sole distributor of the book in Bangladesh.
Published in New Age
Nothing can change without dialogue: Amartya
Staff Correspondent
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen on Monday said nothing can change without dialogue in a democracy and observed that the space for debate was shrinking even in India.
‘I believe discussion is needed to change anything in a democracy. Without discussion, nothing can change,’ said Amartya while launching the translated Bangla version of his latest book in the city.
The Nobel prize-winning economist made the statement in Dhaka at a time when the ruling Awami League, including prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, outright rejected the prospect of talks with opposition parties who have been enforcing countrywide indefinite blockade for the last 50 days demanding fresh national elections.
The Centre for Policy Dialogue and Prothom Alo jointly organised the launch of the Bangla version of ‘An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradiction.’ CPD Chairman Rehman Sobhan presided over the programme.
‘It does not seem that a perfect democracy can be established in India and Bangladesh within a very short period of time, but many democratic things may be possible right now and there is no need to wait further, he said.’
‘And among them, the power to debate is an issue on which the media can play a vital role,’ the Nobel prize-winning economist added.
He said democracy has many facets. In India, democracy is there on the one side, although democratic practices in many fields remain absent. ‘Whether poor people can express their opinion or their voices are being heard is a big issue,’ he said.
Amartya said there may be some faults in a bourgeoisie democracy, but it would be wrong to refuse general democratic rights, in the search of a perfect democracy, in the process of declining bourgeoisie democracy.
‘Many good things may arise from the system despite many faults in it,’ he added.
Amartya said that without human development, economic progress could not be sustained. ‘Uneducated and unhealthy labour force will not help the economy progress,’ he added.
He said in every successful country in the world, the government runs basic public education and health facilities. He urged the media to focus on issues and problems the ordinary and poor people were facing.
Amartya, delivering his 35-minute speech in Bangla, said economic growth in the Indian subcontinent was only 0.01 percent for around 50 years till 1947. India and Bangladesh came out of the low growth trajectory, but there was still disparity between economic growth and human progress.
The economist advised that the share of the benefits of economic growth should be widened so the government can spend more on sectors that hardly get any support from the market economy.
He said these include education, health and gender equality, and suggested that India and Bangladesh could learn from the experience of China in addressing the disparity between the economic growth and human progress.
The lecture followed a question-answer session. The professor responded to many questions covering economic, social and education issues. Economists, politicians, businessmen, teachers, students, professionals and civil society members thronged the auditorium to listen to the economist who won the Nobel Prize in 1998 for his contribution to welfare economics.
Published in Daily Sun
HR development must for economic growth
Says Nobel Laureate Prof Amartya Sen
Staff Correspondent
Nobel Laureate Prof Amartya Sen has warned that greater concentration on economic progress without ensuring human development might create inequalities in society.
Expected human development indicators can accelerate economic prosperity, he said on Monday, citing some examples from the fast-expanding economy India.
Sen made the comments while he was delivering a special lecture on ‘Economic Development and Human Progress’ in the capital on the sidelines of a book-launching ceremony.
“Human development could remain stagnant even after attaining economic growth,” the world famous economist observed.
“The government has to ensure education and health services for its people to make progress in human development indicators.”
For instance, Sen said, India has ridden on the ladder of economic progress since 1947, but still could not ensure human progress for its people, whereas Bangladesh has achieved progress in several human development indicators.
“Still 80 percent of the Indian people cannot get the benefit of the country’s economic growth and it lags far behind in terms of ensuring education, health and women education,” he went on.
In contrast, the Nobel Laureate mentioned, Bangladesh being a least economically developed country has done very well in education and health sectors to stay ahead of India, although it lagged in the segments in 1990.
Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and Prothom Alo jointly organised the launch of ‘An Uncertain Glory: India and Its Contradictions’ authored by Amartya Sen and Jean Drèze at Krishibid Institution auditorium.
According to Sen, the key driver of human progress—education and health—needs government intervention as private sector cannot ensure those for all.
He put emphasis on a constructive dialogue for better democratic environment in a country. “Nothing can be changed in democracy if dialogue is not held.”
The room for dialogue is shrinking fast, Sen said, adding that general democratic rights of people are sometimes overlooked while trying to establish a “real democracy”.
He hoped a “real democracy” will be established both in India and Bangladesh someday, but they need to ensure freedom of speech and free media.
Prof Rehman Sobhan, chairman of CPD board of trustees, presided over the event.
Published in BSS
Stronger govt a must for uplift: Amartya
DHAKA, Feb 23, 2015 (BSS) – The government must be made stronger for economic and human development because none of the nations in the world made progress financially and socially without strengthening their governments, Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen said.
Sen was delivering a talk on economic development and human progress, organised jointly by the Bengali daily Prothom Alo and the think-tank Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) at Krishibid Institution auditorium in the capital’s Farmgate area.
Economists, politicians, businessmen, teachers, students, professionals and civil society members thronged the auditorium to listen to the economist, who won the Nobel Prize in 1998 for his contribution to welfare economics.
All the seats of the auditorium were occupied well in advance of the schedule of the lecture, leaving people in hundreds standing outside and proving wrong the Daily Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman who made a good gesture by keeping the entry open for all, but did not even think of the huge response from the public.
The programme was organised on occasion of the publication of “Bharat: Unnayan O Banchana,” which is a Bangla translation of the book titled “An Uncertain Glory: India and Its Contradictions”, jointly written by Amartya Sen and Jean Dreze.
Unlike before, Sen delivered his 35-minute speech in Bangla, paying tribute to the language martyrs and marking the launching of the Bangla translation of the book, of which he is a co-author.
In his speech, the economist underlined the importance of human progress as he believes that mere economic growth would only bring some money to a country while spending towards human development opens more avenues for further progress by enhancing the capacity of human resources.
For instance, he said Chinese people are now capable of producing small to big things because their government helped build their skills and capacity by spending in education, health and women development.
“India can only think about information technology, pharmaceuticals and auto parts when the issue of producing something in large scale comes across. Like China, India cannot produce many things because people here had not yet been made so skilled and healthy,” he said.
About Bangladesh’s achievement in economic and human development, Professor Sen lauded the progress the country made in social sectors especially in women development, nutrition and life expectancy.
Referring to the historical background, he said the economic growth in the Indian sub-continent was only 0.01 percent for around 50 years till 1947. India and Bangladesh came out of the low level of growth trajectory, but there were still a disparity between economic growth and human progress.
“Bangladesh made significant progress in many areas after the independence,” said Sen, an eminent supporter of the War of Liberation in 1971.
He recognized the progress of Bangladesh after her independence and said in most of the social indicators, Bangladesh has gone ahead of India, particularly in women and gender equality.
The economist said Bangladesh officially focused on women empowerment and resultantly gets much higher proportion of schoolteachers and health and immunization workers from women.
The economist, who candidly identify himself as a leftist, advised that the share of economic growth should be strengthen the government so it can spend more for the sectors those hardly get any support from the market economy.
He said these include education, health and gender equality, and suggested that India and Bangladesh could share the experience of China for addressing the disparity between the economic growth and human progress.
“China provides a replicable model of how the state, which was held in low esteem by free-market philosophers, could play a key role in building a successful market economy, said the Harvard professor, who began his teaching career at the Jadavpur University, Kolkata at the age of only 23 years.
The lecture followed a question-answer session. The professor responded to many questions covering economic, social and education issues.
Responding to a question about making democracy process effective, the professor said democracy is helpful in protecting rights, but the democracy in the subcontinent often fails to serve the poorest sectors of society.
Media, he said, could play a very pro-active role in strengthening the democracy.
CPD Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan presided over the programme.
Ananda Publishers of India published the book while Prothoma Prokashoni, the book wing of the daily Prothom Alo, is the sole distributor of the Bengali translation.
Published in The New Nation
Stronger govt a must for economic, social progress: Amartya Sen
Staff Reporter
Nobel laureate Professor Dr Amartya Sen has said there may be some faults in bourgeois democracy but it will be wrong to refuse others democratic rights in the name of introducing perfect democracy. Laying emphasis on stronger government, he also said no nations in the world could even made progress socially and economically without strengthening their own governments.
Dr Sen was addressing a programme on “Economic Development and Human Progress” jointly organised by the Bengali daily Prothom Alo and the think-tank Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) at Kirishibid Institution in the city on Monday. Professor Rehman Sobhan, Chairman of Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), was in the chair.
The programme was organised on the occasion of the publication of “Bharat: Unnayan O Banchana,” which is a Bangla translation of the book titled “An Uncertain Glory: India and Its Contradictions”, jointly written by Amartya Sen and Jean Dreze. “Many good things may arise from the system despite many faults of the system. It does not seem that a perfect democracy may be established in Bangladesh and India within very short time. But there are many democratic things which may be materialized right now and there is no need to wait further,” the Nobel laureate opined. He said democracy has many aspects. In case of India, democracy is there on the one side and while democratic practices are absent in many fields on the other. Whether poor people can express their opinion or their voices are being heard is the big issue.
Unlike before, Sen delivered his 35-minute speech in Bangla, paying tribute to the language martyrs and marking the launching of the Bangla translation of the book, of which he is a co-author.
He also gave importance on thorough discussion on problems such as health and education of mass people. “I believe, discussion is needed to change any thing in democracy. Without discussion, possibility of bringing change is little”, he hinted. Observing that the practice of discussion among stakeholders has faced down trend in India where the newspapers are busy in publishing news to meet the demand of well-off groups, and new fashion become the headline of the newspapers. “New trends in fashion are not the main issue of the society. Playing role in progress of mass people is more important. So the media will have to serve the mass people. And the media should talk more with the general people about their problems, “he said.
Dr Sen also underlined the importance of human progress as he believes that mere economic growth would only bring some money to a country while spending towards human development opens more avenues for further progress by enhancing the capacity of human resources. “Chinese people are now capable of producing small to big things because their government helped build their skills and capacity by spending in education, health and women development…..India can only think about information technology, pharmaceuticals and auto parts when the issue of producing something in large scale comes across. Like China, India cannot produce many things because people here had not yet been made so skilled and healthy,” he explained.
The noted economist said, “Trafficking of poor girls and women along with rape should get more attention of media as without media attention, the victims will not get the justice. The problem of trafficking women will not be solved without proper attention of the government, he said. Most of the victims of the trafficking are poor women from rural areas, and so the incidences do not get media attention, he observed. At the end of the programme he unveiled the book amid huge claps and roar of cheers. Economists, politicians, businessmen, teachers, students, professionals and civil society members thronged the auditorium to listen to the economist, who won the Nobel Prize in 1998 for his contribution to welfare economics.