Tag: Bangladesh
-
Will e-commerce revive Bangladesh’s artisanal economy?
[By Upasana Bhattacharjee, Payal Arora and Usha Raman] How does a nation participate in the digital creative economy centered on individual entrepreneurship while acknowledging its legacy in collectives of women producing crafts? This column explores the experience of Bangladesh, where despite the digitization of the craft industry, digital participation remains limited to a small number […]
-
Women in Digital – the organization that has trained thousands of female coders in Bangladesh
[By Jamil Wyne] Greater inclusion in the technology sector – specifically ensuring that women and other under-represented groups can find gainful employment within it and make meaningful contributions to the sector – is predicated on building computing capacity of these demographics. Teaching coding skills, and broadening individuals’ exposure to digital industries writ large is a […]
-
Automation of the Readymade Garment Sector in Bangladesh: Who is paying the price?
[By Mohammad Sahid Ullah and Rawshon Akhter] Alaya Akter, a first-generation garment worker in Bangladesh, began her apparel career as an operator assistant in the early 90s. She lost her job at the age of 48 due to automation at her factory last year. She is no exception; several thousands of Readymade Garment (RMG) workers […]
-
Locked down but unlocked: How online retail may preserve Bangladesh’s Jamdani heritage craft
[By Rawshon Akhter and Mohammad Sahid Ullah] Haji Razzaque, an artisanal broker of around 50 years, shares his struggles of selling the products from Bangladesh’s Jamdani weavers, purveyors of a largely female-driven craft. He speaks of how, as a young boy, he would spend three to four hours every Friday morning at the Jamdani haat […]
-
From unbanked to fully digital? A look behind Bangladesh’s online money transfers
[By Mohammad Sahid Ullah] COVID-19 has shown how some states, when motivated, can institute compassionate, sweeping and radical changes that remake society and its relations between workers and their organizations. However, integrating novel interventions into our everyday life demands that we think beyond the reactive impulse to address chronic problems. When technology is used as […]
-
Hanging by a thread: The unraveling of the garment industry in Bangladesh
[By Mohammad Sahid Ullah] Around 4.1 million workers of the Bangladeshi apparel industry that exports ready-made garments to more than 165 countries across the world is facing a severe crisis amid the COVID19 epidemic. Many of them continue working in factories, to meet shipment deadlines, defying the government shut down order. Meanwhile, many factory owners […]