Term Paper
On

GLOBALIZATION AND ITS IMPACTS ON BANGLADESH

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Prepared for:

Dr. Nurul Islam
Supervisor
Department of Management
Govt. Titumir College, Dhaka

Prepared by:

Mafia Bhuiyan
Class Roll No : 547
Exam Roll No : 9613176
Registration No : 1632581
Session : 2009-2010
Department of Management
Govt. Titumir College, Dhaka

Date of Submission: March 7, 2013
Letter of Transmittal

Dr. Nurul Islam
Supervisor
Department of Management
Govt. Titumir College, Dhaka

Subject: Submission of Term Paper.

Dear Sir,
We have the pleasure to present the report on “Globalization and its Impacts in Bangladesh.” This report is done to find out the concept of globalization and its effects on different sectors of Bangladesh and on its peoples’ life.

It is conducted by our group under your supervisory advises. We offer you thank to allow us to do such job. To prepare this report, we have tried to devote our best effort and conducted extensive literature review to find out the study relevant materials. We sincerely hope and believe that our report will secure your approval and serve its purpose. During the process of preparation due to various constrains there may be some mistakes. However, we apologize for all those and beg your kind consideration in this regard.

Finally, we hope that you would be kind enough to receive this report and bless us hearty.

Thank you

Sincerely Yours,

……………………
Mafia Bhuiyan
Class Roll No : 547
Exam Roll No : 9613176
Registration No : 1632581
Session : 2009-2010
Department of Management
Govt. Titumir College, Dhaka

Acknowledgement

Throughout the development of this report, several outstanding individuals were integrally involved and made substantial contribution, especially those who took the time and effort to share their thoughts and suggestions to improve the report. At the beginning, we would like to pay our humble gratitude to the almighty for giving us the ability to work hard under pressure.

We would like to thank our course Supervisor Dr. Nurul Islam, Supervisor, Department of Management, Govt. Titumir College, Dhaka. Without his guidance and assistance, this paper would not have seen the light of day. We would also like thank our friends and our senior brothers for their kind help.

Declaration

I hereby declare that this term paper entitled “Globalization and its Impacts in Bangladesh” Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of B.B.A (Honours), Department of Management, Govt. Titumir College under National University.

It is my original work and that it has not been submitted elsewhere for the award of any other degree, diploma on other similar title on prize.

Md. Ariful Islam
Class Roll No : 90948
Exam Roll No : 9613099
Registration No : 1632489
Session : 2009-2010
Department of Management
Tejgaon College, Dhaka

|1. |Introduction |1 |
|2. |Objectives of the Study |2 |
|3. |Methodology of the Study |2 |
|4. |Limitations of the Study |2 |
|5. |Impact of globalization on Bangladesh Economy |2-5 |
|6. |Impact of globalization on Bangladesh Environment |6-12 |
| |Impact of Globalization on Bangladeshi People’s Life (Women), Health and Nutrition | |
|7. |Impact of Globalization on Bangladesh Education |13-18 |
| |Globalization & Urbanization | |
|8. |Is globalization good for Bangladesh |18-21 |
|9. |Conclusion |21-24 |
|10. 11. |References |24-27 |
|12. | |27 |
| | |28 |
| | | |

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

The term "globalization" has acquired considerable emotive force. Some view it as a process that is beneficial—a key to future world economic development—and also inevitable and irreversible. Others regard it with hostility, even fear, believing that it increases inequality within and between nations, threatens employment and living standards and thwarts social progress. This brief offers an overview of some aspects of globalization and aims to identify ways in which countries can tap the gains of this process, while remaining realistic about its potential and its risks.
Globalization offers extensive opportunities for truly worldwide development but it is not progressing evenly. Some countries are becoming integrated into the global economy more quickly than others. Countries that have been able to integrate are seeing faster growth and reduced poverty. Outward-oriented policies brought dynamism and greater prosperity to much of East Asia, transforming it from one of the poorest areas of the world 40 years ago. And as living standards rose, it became possible to make progress on democracy and economic issues such as the environment and work standards.
By contrast, in the 1970s and 1980s when many countries in Latin America and Africa pursued inward-oriented policies, their economies stagnated or declined, poverty increased and high inflation became the norm. In many cases, especially Africa, adverse external developments made the problems worse. As these regions changed their policies, their incomes have begun to rise. An important transformation is underway. Encouraging this trend, not reversing it, is the best course for promoting growth, development and poverty reduction.
The crises in the emerging markets in the 1990s have made it quite evident that the opportunities of globalization do not come without risks—risks arising from volatile capital movements and the risks of social, economic, and environmental degradation created by poverty. This is not a reason to reverse direction, but for all concerned—in developing countries, in the advanced countries, and of course investors—to embrace policy changes to build strong economies and a stronger world financial system that will produce more rapid growth and ensure that poverty is reduced.

2. Objectives of the Study.

➢ Effect of globalization on the economy of Bangladesh. ➢ Effect of globalization on the environment of Bangladesh. ➢ Effect of globalization on the culture of Bangladesh and on the people’s life.

3. Methodology of the Study

The study is based on the secondary data. Most of the information is collected from published articles of different books, newspapers like The Daily Star, Bangladesh Observer etc. and internet.

4. Limitations of the Study ✓ The study focuses on effect of globalization only in Bangladesh. ✓ Because of the limitation of the time the study has been curtained. ✓ There is also data insufficiency.

5. Impact of Globalization on Bangladesh Economy
Bangladesh's economy grew rapidly during the 1990s as the country liberalized its markets and became increasingly integrated into the world economy. Until the 2001 global recession, Bangladesh ranked third for improvement of human development - behind only Cape Verde and China - thanks in large part to exports from its blossoming garment industry. Wahiduddin Mahmud, economist and former Minister of Finance and Planning for Bangladesh, explains that despite these positive trends, the recession hit Bangladesh's economy hard, and it seems unlikely that the country will soon regain the momentum it had in the 1990s. The increasing competitiveness of the global garment industry, in particular, threatens to undermine Bangladesh's growth.

In addition, the inflow of migrant worker remittances - one of the few saving graces during the economic slowdown - may also be in peril. These remittances rely strongly on the economic fortunes and hospitality of host countries, some of which are now changing their policies and attitudes towards guest workers. "If Bangladesh is to become less vulnerable to the economic fortunes of others," Mahmud concludes, "it will need to strengthen its domestic economy, creating jobs and markets at home."

Bangladesh faces the challenge of achieving accelerated economic growth and alleviating the massive poverty that afflicts nearly two-fifths of its 135 million people. To meet this challenge, market-oriented liberalizing policy reforms were initiated in the mid-1980s and were pursued much more vigorously in the 1990s. These reforms were particularly aimed at moving towards an open economic regime and integrating with the global economy.

During the 1990s, notable progress was made in economic performance. Along with maintaining economic stabilization with a significantly reduced and declining dependence on foreign aid, the economy appeared to begin a transition from stabilization to growth. The average annual growth in per capita income had steadily accelerated from about 1.6 per cent per annum in the first half of the 1980s to 3.6 percent by the latter half of the 1990s. This improved performance owed itself both to a slowdown in population growth and a sustained increase in the rate of GDP growth, which averaged percent annually during the second half of the 1990s. During this time, progress in the human development indicators was even more impressive.

Bangladesh was in fact among the top performing countries in the 1990s, when measured by its improvement in the Human Development Index (HDI) as estimated by the United Nations Development Project (UNDP). In terms of the increase in the value of HDI between 1990 and 2001, Bangladesh is surpassed only by China and Cape Verde. While most low-income countries depend largely on the export of primary commodities, Bangladesh has made the transition from being primarily a jute-exporting country to a garment-exporting one. This transition has been dictated by the country's resource endowment, characterized by extreme land scarcity and a very high population density, making economic growth dependent on the export of labor-intensive manufactures.

Although Bangladesh still does not rank among the most globally integrated developing economies, the pace of integration has been quite rapid. Until hit by the global recession in 2001, there had been robust and sustained growth of export earnings, averaging about 15 percent per year in the 1990s. As a result, the ratio of export earnings to GDP had nearly doubled to about 14 percent by the end of the decade. In 2001-02, however, export earnings declined in US dollar terms for the first time in nearly 15 years. Although there was a recovery in the following year, the medium term outlook indicates that it will be difficult to regain the export momentum of the 1990s.
A greater integration with the global economy seems to fit well with the kind of pro-poor growth envisaged by Bangladesh's development efforts. The export-oriented garment industry presently employs around 1.8 million workers - mostly women from low-income, rural backgrounds. The second dominant export-oriented activity, shrimp farming, is also very labor intensive, presently employing nearly half a million rural poor. More generally, import liberalization is likely to have contributed to the creation of productive employment for the poor through the strengthening of many small-scale and informal sector activities that have benefited from improved access to imported inputs.

The relatively strong growth of the Bangladeshi economy in the 1990s was underpinned by the even stronger export growth. Unfortunately, the removal of the Multi-Fiber Arrangements (MFA) quotas now threatens to increase competition in the global garment industry and thus limit Bangladesh's growth. The strength of the industry depends on the export quotas dictated by the MFA and preferential access in the major Western markets. Moreover, other export industries are unlikely to take its place if the garment industry shrinks; excluding the garment industry, the growth of the large-scale manufacturing industries was a meager 4 percent annually in the 1990s. That may partly reflect the overall poor investment climate, but also partly the effect of increased competition from imports on industries catering to the domestic market. In such a situation, the desirability of further import liberalization may be put to question. Since the country depends heavily on imported raw materials, machinery and components, cutting back on imports would hurt prospects for creating jobs by adversely affecting production and investment activities.

It is not easy for a Least Developed Country (LDC) like Bangladesh to specialize in manufactured exports. Having low wage costs can hardly compensate for its lack of marketing skills and infrastructure and poor overall investment climate. Moreover, the high degree of dependence of domestic industries on imported raw materials and industrial inputs makes it difficult for Bangladesh to satisfy the so-called "rules of origin" in getting preferential access for its exports in the markets of the developed countries.

Thus, most of Bangladesh's garment exports are not eligible for the tariff concessions given under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) in the EU market. This problem has not received adequate attention, since the other major players in textile trade among developing countries are hardly affected by it.

Bangladesh can hopefully benefit from the European Union's decision to allow duty-free import of "everything but arms" from the LDCs, and it would like to see the replication of such trade concessions in other industrialized countries. Unfortunately, the same rules of origin as under GSP apply here as well. The GSP rules were devised decades ago to help developing countries promote export-oriented industrialization. But, in effect, the rules proved discriminatory against LDCs like Bangladesh that count on low value-addition processing activities. On top of these rules, Bangladesh also has to worry about non-tariff barriers such as those relating to environmental or labor standards. Anti-dumping actions are already under way against exports from Bangladesh, and they are an important latent threat when the MFA is dismantled. The tough sanitary and phytosanitary regulations of the developed countries are also an impediment for diversifying into agro-processed export items for Bangladesh and other countries that lack product standards and certification facilities.

6. Impact of Globalization on Bangladesh Environment
Bangladesh is facing a tremendous challenge as it stands at the doorstep of the 21st century. The country's economy is in disarray; the political instability has become a part of everyday life; the college campuses have turned into battlegrounds; the security of ordinary citizens is threatened; the natural calamities are rampant; and the quality of water and air has become unacceptable by world's standard. Most of these problems have existed in Bangladesh in the past. However, there is no sign of improvement in the sight, and the degree of deterioration has reached an alarming proportion. Many would argue that achieving a prosperous economy and political stability should be the top two priorities for Bangladesh in order to provide a decent life for its citizens. Other issues of import would be the improvement of law and order, education, and the state of the environment. While all of the issues mentioned above are important and need to be addressed, some are more important than the others, because they are contributing to a crisis situation and are posing a threat to our survival. The people of Bangladesh need to set their priorities straight and act upon them immediately.

6.1. Setting our priorities straight:
If a gallop poll were conducted among ordinary citizens of Bangladesh to identify the top priority issues for the 21st century, it would probably be unlikely that the environment would top the list. This is to be expected, given the degree of environmental awareness and the average level of education on environmental that is available to people through schools and other institutions. I would, however, argue that in Bangladesh, the improvement of the state of the environment is a pre-requisite for prosperous economic development. Only a balance between the environment stewardship and economic development can guarantee a sustainable future and the well being of the country in the 21st century.

6.2. Environmental stewardship vs. economic development:
The environment is comprised of physical (air, water, soil, mineral resources, light, and temperature) and biological (plants and animals) realms. The term "ecology" encompasses a complex interaction and the delicate ecosystems within which humans exist. Our dependence on the environment has both a short-term component and a long-term component. On one hand, since we breathe air, every minute of our life literally depends on the environment. On the other hand, the role that other components (such as, mineral resources, temperature, plants, etc.) of the environment play is not always very obvious within the timeframe of the human life span. Quite often the long-term consequences of particular human activities are overlooked in the interests of short-term gain. Mineral resources extracted from the earth's crust are the basis for civilization. Rocks and minerals are the raw materials for most of the industrial products that we use everyday (oil, gas, coal, construction materials fertilizers, metals, rare earth elements, and radioactive elements are just a few to name). In other words, most of the products that we use to maintain the standard of living and comfort come from the environment.

6.3. Everything affects everything else:
The environment is a part of the "earth system", which has four interrelated components, namely, the lithospehre (the earth's outer layer), atmosphere, hydrosphere (surface and groundwater), and ecosphere (plants and animals realm). The interrelationship of various components can be demonstrated with the example of flooding in Bangladesh. Flooding is a natural phenomenon, which is a part of the hydrologic cycle (hydrosphere). Human activity (in the ecosphere), such as deforestation or soil erosion due to tillage, can reduce the water carrying capacity of rivers, causing more floods. Also, increased amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere will result in increased temperatures, causing more evaporation, precipitation and floods. Volcanic eruptions (in lithosphere) can melt snow (in hydrosphere) in the mountains, causing more floods. The above examples demonstrate how all components of the earth system are interrelated. Many such examples can be drawn upon to elaborate on this point.

6.4. Humans as agents of environmental degradation:
The earth is a dynamic planet that has maintained a delicate balance through time immemorial. Any external stress imposed upon the Earth’s ecosystem can results in an imbalance among its components, much like a motor engine that would malfunction due to improper handling or mismanagement of its components. Humans are part of the ecosphere, but depend on all the other components for their survival. Although the human species appeared on Earth only recently on a geologic time scale compared with the age of the earth, humans have already proven to be a major denominator in many spheres of the environment. Humans have accelerated natural changes in the environment at a rate faster than ever before.
During the last few decades the earth ecosystem has manifested many signs of unbearable imbalance in its environmental components. Examples of such signs of imbalance, as demonstrated by nature's fury, would include the increased rates of: (a) recent major flooding in Bangladesh (in 1988,
1993, and 1998) and elsewhere; (b) depletion of the ozone layer; (c) global warming due to an increase in greenhouse gases; (d) sea-level rise and coastal erosion (Bangladesh will be the most affected country should the sea-level continues to rise in the future); (e) soil erosion and desertification (northwestern region in Bangladesh is experiencing desertification); (f) cyclones (Bangladesh was hit by 7 of the 10 most devastating cyclones in the world during the last 100 years) ; (g) El Nino and La Nina; (g) tornadoes (more than 100 severe tornadoes hit Bangladesh during the last 100 years) ; (h) air pollution (quality of air in Dhaka is the worst among the major cities in the world) ; and (i) decline in bio-diversity (along with other rare species, the number of the Royal Bengal tiger in the Sundarbans is in decline).

6.5. Sustainability is not enough, prosperity is needed:
Sustainable development calls for maintaining the present standard of living while safeguarding the environment. However, simply maintaining the current standard of living should not or cannot be the ultimate goal for our future generations, for it will mean "no progress." Humans have always striven to improve their standard of living compared to that of their predecessors. Doing better than what was possible in the past is the driving force behind progress. What we need, therefore, is not sustainability, but potential for prosperity. This should translate into a prudent use of the earth's resources, as well as an improvement in the quality of the environment. Discovery of new resources, energy sources, and innovation in the use of alternative resources can help us achieve this goal. Bangladesh should develop nuclear energy and solar energy to produce electricity, and to meet other energy needs of the country.

6.6. Clean air, water, and land are human right:
All people have a right to a clean environment. Material wealth, such as the guarantee of food, employment, subsistence, education, and health, will not make human life worthwhile without having clean air, water, and land. To achieve this goal, Bangladesh needs to implement stricter laws to control solid waste, industrial waste, medical waste, and sewage sludge disposal. All municipalities need to have garbage collection services and sanitary landfills or incinerators to control solid waste disposal. In addition, implementation of sanitary toilets in all villages should be a primary requirement to keep both surface and groundwater clean. All chemical and liquid wastes need to be treated before disposing in rivers and streams as effluents. Recent incidences of ammonia contamination of rivers by the Ghorasal fertilizer factory, trace metal contamination of soils by the Hazaribagh tannery, arsenic contamination of millions of tube wells, and lead contamination of air will become catastrophic in proportion if no mitigation measures are taken. To reduce environmental degradation caused by point-sources of pollution (such as, industrial and medical sources of contamination), the "polluters-pay-policy" (PPP) must be implemented. Moreover, a better land management practice will be necessary to control non-point sources of contamination, such as arsenic, fertilizers, animal waste, detergent, and pesticides. These higher environmental standards will be costly to Bangladesh in the short term, but in the long term less costly than contending with more drastic environmental remediation and the destruction of major natural resources. These policies are often hard for elected politicians to sell to a population, which is already faced with financial hardship. Only by educating the public on the need for immediate action, and on the connection between their survival and environmental stewardship will this be possible.

6.7. Effect of land-use is cumulative:
Gradual degradation of the environment eventually will lead to catastrophic consequences. For example, every time we build a new house or a road on the floodplain, we reduce the total run-off area and groundwater recharge area, which result in an increase in flooding propensity or in decline in the groundwater table. Filling up of the lakes (e.g. the recent incidences of encroachment onto and land-grabbing of Gulshan-Baridhara lakes in Dhaka by the RAJUK) and rivers by dumping sediments for development reduces the water carrying capacity of a drainage network, causing water logging and extended flooding in an area. In order for us to be able to reduce the flooding propensity in Bangladesh, we have to control building on the floodplains. Also, deforestation due to development leads to increased soil erosion, decline in bio-diversity, increase in flooding, decline in groundwater recharge, and increase in carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) in the atmosphere. In Bangladesh, lateral spread of development should be contained as much as possible by implementing more environmentally sound development, such as cluster housing and compact township. New development for housing, roads, shopping malls, or offices will have to be vertical, i.e. multi-storied. New laws and regulations need to be developed and strictly enforced to control lateral development onto the floodplains. Planners and developers must produce an environmental impact statement (EIS) for their planned land-use activities. The EIS should include alternative plans, as well as cost/benefit analysis, which should be reviewed by the general public and independent experts in the field before implementing.

6.8. Most environmental problems are related to Earth processes:
Many environmental problems result from human interactions with natural processes, extent of which do not conform to political boundaries. Natural processes cannot be prevented. However, a comprehensive understanding of these processes can allow us to effectively plan land-use and thereby mitigate their effect. For example, flooding in Bangladesh is but a part of the overall hydrodynamic process that is active in the Ganges-Brahmaputra Meghna watersheds. Bangladesh comprises only 10% of the watershed, and is located at the receiving end of this basin. Since Bangladesh is a small part of a bigger hydrodynamic system, which consists of several countries in the region, a mutual understanding and cooperation among the co-riparian countries will be necessary in order to formulate any long-term and permanent solution to the flooding problems. Arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bangladesh is just another example of a geologic problem that owes its origin to areas beyond the confines of Bangladesh. Therefore, any clean up measures for these aquifers could be futile, since Bangladesh is located down-gradient of the geologic formations that contain water. However, further research may prove otherwise.

6.9. Multiple and aesthetic uses of land:
Because of the scarcity of land, any land-use planning needs to be designed for more than one purpose, when and if possible. For example, a lake in a residential area can have multiple purposes: (a) water sports, (b) fishing, (c) groundwater recharge basin, (d) recreational park, and (e) flood control reservoir. Another such example can be the usage of dredged sand from rivers. The dredging of rivers can: (a) improve water transport, (b) reduce flooding propensity, (c) supply sand for building and road construction, and (d) supply sediments to elevate roads and villages, which in turn can reduce flood damage. In addition, dredged sands that are enriched with iron hydroxides (e.g. red sand from Barind Tract, Madhupur Ghar, and Brahmaputra-Tista basin areas) can be used as liners in ponds to reduce arsenic contamination in surface water. However, further research will be necessary to study the feasibility of such usage of red sands.

6.10. Recycle-Reuse-Reduce:
This is the most fundamental slogan for environmental awareness. Most Bangladeshis recycle newspapers, aluminum utensils, and glass bottles.
However, an integrated plan is needed for a nation-wide recycling plan for everything that is recyclable. Proper environmental education, workshops, training, and publicity can increase awareness about reduction in the us of commodities through the basic concept of recycle-reuse-reduce. All species have the equal right to survive: according to the "Gaia Hypothesis" put forward by "Deep Ecologists", all flora and fauna are nature's creation and have an important role to play in the intriguing web of life. All species have an equal right to survival. Human activities have already driven many species from the surface of the earth. Only a few years ago most jungles in the villages of Bangladesh were rich in bio-diversity. For instance, hedgehogs, weasels, lizards, cheetahs, parrots, owls, etc. are now almost extinct. Stricter environmental laws and better awareness are necessary to save all species before they are extinct. This is primarily a result of loss of habitat. This issue will have to be addressed by setting aside sensitive parcels of land for bio-diversity and by encouraging the reclamation of certain habitats through reintroduction of the near-extinct species in those protected sanctuaries.

6.11. The star thrower:
According to an American folk story, two friends were walking on the beach after a coastal storm that washed thousands of starfish ashore. As they walked, one of the friends started to pick up starfish one by one, and started to throw them in the water. The other friend says, " there are thousands of starfish on the beach, what difference will it make if you throw just a few in the water?" His friend picks up another starfish and says, "it will make a difference for this one" as he throws it in the water. All of us can be "a star thrower" even in a small way. Everyone can make a difference. Collectively, we will make a big difference.

7. Impact of Globalization on Bangladeshi People’s Life (Women), Health and Nutrition:
Globalization has contributed to displacement, commodification, and often modern-day slavery of women in Asia . “Those that are greatly affected are industries of predominantly women who work in jobs dealing with textiles and clothing, electronics, food, and other assembly-type sectors. Technological advances in computers has pushed even more women out of the production processes, adding greatly to unemployment. This further depresses an already low workers’ wages. Women workers must contribute to the family income and have no choice but to accept low wages.” Despite violence and patriarchal oppression, women were traditionally the economic agents in family/community life. Production in subsistence economy was localized and community based, where women had the repository of knowledge and skills. Industrialization of agriculture had shifted women out of their familiar domain of “local” and put them in a space where they have no control, where commodity prices are determined by multinationals, where new technologies are being promoted to create more disparity.

Moreover, with the devastation of traditional means of survival, it is typically women who pick up the pieces with redoubled work. If water is polluted and scarce, women walk twice as far to car it back. Women go out to work to clean the houses of the rich. If the health centers are closed down, women recover traditional herbal medicine, growing it in their gardens. It is they who nurse the sick and the dying. If there is no food or nursing staff for patients in hospitals, it is the women who arrive to feed and clean the sick family member. In short it is women’s redoubled work that staves off disaster for the poorest. In addition, women in poor families are often poorer than the adult males of their own families, since material goods are appropriated by the men in the family. At the same time, they are redoubling the labor of daily survival; women are often suffering from the anger and loss of status of their unemployed men. It is they who are beaten in the family, raped in their homes or in the streets, as they struggle to provide means of livelihood for their children. It is they are who are coerced into the sex trades.

Feminist voices conveyed the context of struggle against violence in each country, and placed the causes and effects under careful scrutiny. Research in the Indian State of Kerala revealed that 49% of women are without land or property and have experienced the long-term physical abuse in the home, while women who owned land or held title to a separate house were far less likely have endured such violence, at 18% and 10% respectively. As we can see, globalization and marginalization go hand in hand. The UPD Reports since 1991 have drawn pointed attention to the growing economic inequality and poverty in the world. The reality is more sharply focused when it is noted that 70% of the one billion absolute poor consists of women. The reduction of fertilizer subsidies most severely affected the marginal peasants who cannot afford the higher prices. The victims most seriously affected by these changes were women and children. Health care also was cut. This cut down of rations for malaria, tuberculosis and leprosy prevention led to an increase in the number of persons below the poverty line from 310 million in 1989-90 to 355 million in 1991-93. Impoverishment exacerbates gender inequality within each household. Cutbacks in personal consumption primarily affects women and girls. In general terms, the current process of globalization, in which the vast powers of Trans national capital are dominant, its economic, political, social and cultural dynamics foster the ultimate destruction of all life.

The financial power of capital in the global market, especially IMF/WB “structural readjustment programs” directly cause the radical impoverishment of people and the massive death of people due to hunger. The worsening poverty in India has led to thousands of women going to other countries to find better opportunities. Migration policies by sending governments have encouraged the trafficking of women, as trading in women’s bodies has become a very lucrative industry at a very limited investment…Modern-day slavery of women brought about by globalization is clearly seen in commodification of women’s bodies through prostitution. With regard to AIDS in Bangladesh, there are many untested people with Aids. Most of the spread of AIDS is happening through heterosexual activities, especially prostitution. Women are the main victims of this situation. The abuse of women was prevalent in India long before globalization. But globalization has caused the rapid increase of violence toward women,because of the stress and strain of the community and the changes in the traditional lifestyle. In the joint family system there were social control systems which helped women with these issues. But due to the individualistic lifestyle brought about by modernity, women often suffer alone or without strong social networks.

The best way to communicate with people in villages in Bangladesh is to hold a fair. So when Columbia researchers and their Bangladeshi colleagues wanted to transmit a critically important message, they followed local custom and organized village festivals, bringing in clowns for the children and folk singers for the adults. The performers were actually public health educators who used this medium to teach adults and children which village wells contained water safe enough to drink. This public health education effort is only one small part of a multidisciplinary Columbia University project aimed at helping Bangladesh solve, or at least control, its massive water supply contamination problem. "Bangladesh's drinking water is one of the world's most hazardous because of the presence of arsenic," says Dr. Joseph H. Graziano, professor of environmental health sciences at the Mailman School of Public Health, professor of pharmacology at P&S and associate dean for research at the Mailman School. "An estimated 40 million people, roughly 30 percent of the population, are currently exposed to poisonous levels of arsenic in well water supplied by about 10 million hand pumps."

Arsenic is a carcinogen associated with bladder, lung, and liver cancer and tumors on limbs. People exposed to high levels over time typically develop skin lesions on their hands and feet that, in severe cases, can lead to amputation. It also affects the cardiovascular system and raises the risk of stroke, diabetes, and neurological problems. Arsenic poisoning also stigmatizes people. Some of those affected are shunned by their families because of fear they are contagious or cursed. Ironically, the current, grave problem in Bangladesh stems from efforts to solve an earlier water pollution problem. In 1970, at the time Bangladesh became independent from Pakistan, Bangladeshis were collecting drinking water from microbially contaminated lakes and rivers. This led to high levels of often-fatal diarrhea, cholera, and typhoid. UNICEF in the early 1970s tried to help Bangladesh by drilling millions of shallow wells, a move that drastically reduced the spread of gastrointestinal diseases. Unbeknownst to UNICEF, however, the groundwater in many places contains naturally occurring high concentrations of arsenic Dr. Graziano is leading the six-year, $10.4 million research and intervention project. The effort, now in its fourth year, is part of the U.S. government-funded Superfund Basic Research Program, which supports efforts to study and clean contaminated sites. The collaborative project brings together scientists from the Mailman School, P&S, Columbia's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, and Dhaka University in Bangladesh. Some of the key collaborators are Dr. Habibul Ahsan, associate professor of epidemiology at the Mailman School; Dr. Alexander van Geen, Doherty Senior Research Scientist at Lamont-Doherty; and Dr. Tom Hei, professor of radiation oncology at P&S and environmental health sciences at the Mailman School.

The project includes two public health studies – one that is tracking 12,000 people to define the health effects of arsenic exposure and another that studies the effect of arsenic on pregnancy and child development. The project also has two basic science research studies – one that looks at how much lead and arsenic in soil are absorbed by people and another assessing how arsenic causes genetic damage in mammalian cells."We want to determine what dose of arsenic is associated with disease and the biological mechanisms involved that enable arsenic to cause cancer and neurologic disease," Dr. Graziano says. "We are also developing strategies for medical and nutritional intervention." One of the first things the researchers did in Bangladesh was to select a small but representative section of the country. They chose a 25-square-kilometer area with 6,000 wells that serve 70,000 people. They analyzed samples from each well and mapped their locations and arsenic concentrations using global positioning system (GPS) equipment. They also placed labels on the wells – showing arsenic levels and whether the water is safe to use – and encouraged residents to switch to the safe wells. But that was just a short-term solution. To make sure communities have access to cleaner water, the researchers are supervising the installation of deep wells that tap safe groundwater. So far, they have completed 50 deep wells and plan to dig more. "We are finding that by consuming the safer water, especially from the new deeper wells, people have dramatically less arsenic in their bodies, as indicated by lower arsenic levels in their urine," Dr. Graziano says.

Although the health studies are not completed, the researchers are finding that arsenic affects child development, causing cognitive deficits. Now, the researchers are focusing on helping Bangladesh deal with the problem on a countrywide basis, rather than just in one small section. With encouragement from Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, director of Columbia's Earth Institute, who, along with Lee Bollinger, president, Columbia University, and Dr. Allan Rosenfield, dean of the Mailman School, visited Bangladesh, the researchers have drafted recommendations for a strategic plan to fix the water supply problem across the entire country within five years. Such efforts are especially important to South Asia because there are high levels of arsenic in groundwater from eastern India to Vietnam. "We hope our findings will help developing countries ensure that their people have water that is safe to drink," Dr. Graziano says. "We also hope the research will assist in U.S. and international policy decisions in protecting water supplies globally." The research is supported by the NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences as well as Columbia's Earth Institute, the Mailman School of Public Health, and the Lamont Investment Fund.

Cultural Hegemony and Its Impact On Sectarian/Religious Violence. The economic dimensions of globalization are not the only factors that need reconsidering. The global market and its technocratic powers dominate the world of culture. Historically, there is an unholy alliance of western modernity and its cultural dynamics with the Christian theology of culture, which has condemned the cultures of the people. “Cultural imperialism has 2 major goals—one economic and other political—to capture markets for its cultural commodities and to establish hegemony by shaping popular consciousness…Cultural domination is an integration dimension of any sustained system of global exploitation. There is a systematic cultural penetration and domination of the cultural life of the popular class of the West in order to reorder the values, behavior, institutions, and identity of the oppressed people to conform to the interests of the imperial class (Panikar, 374). In response, some argue that culture should be guided by moral universal values whereby a strong ethic of restraint is within one culture is applied to prevent the dominance of another culture.

Nevertheless, the process of globalization has ushered in new cultural identities whereby traditional cultural values, such as the reservoir of beauty, are destroyed in various manners. This is experienced in Asia and other parts of the world. For instance, globalization, with its ability to provide cheaper goods imported from around the world, has engendered “false needs’ for ever more goods. This has had a direct impact in Bangladesh, especially, as more of a dowry is demanded on the part of young women and their parents to meet the groom’s family’s expectations of a new TV, car, home, etc. before the wedding day.

Beyond dowry though, urbanization has brought a lot of other changes to Bangladeshi culture. Many marriages are breaking up for many reasons such as modern lifestyles, professional ambitions, and unrealistic expectations. In cities, young people are starting to choose their own partners, though arranged marriages are still the norm. The impact of satellite TV and industrialization has changed the cultural values of the upper middle class and the upper class.

One major consequence though of the rapidly changing social norms and values is a resurgence of religious communalism or sectarianism. Here, nation leaders deflect attention from their own allegiance to the TNCs and instead their people,s direct economic and social frustration due unemployment, poverty, and the breakdown of culture towards members of different faiths. Most often, women suffer the most from this inter-religious tension.

8. Impact of Globalization on Bangladesh Education
Bangladesh has made remarkable strides in education, propelled by government commitment, innovative NGO initiatives, and donor support. Today primary school enrollment is nearly universal for both girls and boys. As a result of globalization many private universities are established to provide global standard education. But education achievement remains poor. For many children the basic problem is poverty.

The Global Partnership has been engaged in an eight-year effort to provide learning opportunities leading to a Graduate Diploma or a Master's Degree in NGO Leadership and Management for development professionals. After eight years, 161 people have earned Diplomas and 42 have earned a Master's
Degree.

Currently, the Global Partnership is reassessing the model to make it more accessible and affordable to participants in the global south. Please revisit this page to follow our progress in redesigning learning opportunities in areas such as NGO Leadership and Management and Participative, Grassroots, Sustainable Development. We intend to offer programs leading to certificates, diplomas and degrees to serve development professionals throughout the world. What follows is our first generation effort that is now being redesigned. Thanks for your interest in the global partnership.

The Global Partnership (GP) offers uniquely relevant, international-quality, professional education opportunities for the leaders, managers and staff of non-governmental organizations (NGO) and other civil society organizations around the world.As a South-North partnership of NGO training and capacity building organizations and an accredited school of graduate and professional studies, the GP's members collaborate to offer a number of different programs. Postgraduate Diploma in NGO Leadership and Management Joint Diploma-Master's Degree Individual Courses (intensive residence and/or online)

All programs build on participants' prior development work experience. New learning is grounded in practice through which participants directly contribute to strengthening the capacity of their own organizations. We envision a world in which communities and nations that have been marginalized by poverty, conflict, environmental degradation and other forms of injustice (and that, due to the forces of globalization, are ever more distant from the locus of power and the decisions that impact their quality of life) gain control over their own futures and affect social change.

The GP will contribute to this vision by strengthening the capacity of NGOs, other civil society organizations, social movements, and the poor and marginalized themselves in order to make development more effective, to democratize the state, and to increase the accountability of the market sector. Their primary strategies include: Working with a critical mass of current and emerging leaders to develop or refine the social values, competencies, credibility and confidence they need to effectively engage organizations and networks in local, national and global development strategies; Supporting these leaders in their efforts to become highly skilled learners, capable of continuous clarification of values and increases in competencies through reflection on practice, dialogue with colleagues, and self-directed learning activities; Focusing on values and competencies needed for communication and collaboration across cultural and national boundaries, including South-South and South-North divides; Promoting greater understanding of NGOs and civil society organizations as agents of social justice; Expanding the capacities of NGOs in the South to offer high-quality education and training opportunities and the capacities of Northern institutions to more effectively support such NGOs through partnerships based on equality and mutual learning.

The Global Partnership reflects the mission and values of its three founders: BRAC in Bangladesh, organisation of Rural Associations for Progress (ORAP) in Zimbabwe and the School for International Training (SIT) in Vermont, USA. Since its inception in 1996, the GP's primary focus has been a postgraduate diploma in NGO Leadership and Management based at BRAC. The diploma meets nearly half of the requirements for a master's degree program based at SIT. Beginning in 2002, individual courses in the diploma curriculum and new options for earning the diploma are offered through three additional NGO centers: Escuela para el Desarrollo in Peru and the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) in the Philippines and IIRR in Nairobi, Kenya. Currently, the GP is in the process of adding centers in other global regions and planning additional courses and diploma programs in related fields of study and practice.

Technical education, we feel, should get more emphasis almost everywhere. The Bangladesh dual system of vocational education, however, is difficult to replicate. This is due to the fact, that this system has two components, i.e. the practical training in a (mostly) private firm and the theoretical education in the state run vocational schools, this is why we call it a dual system. Boys and girls finish school usually after the ninth grade and then enter a contract for training with a private firm, or previously master craftsmen, usually for three years. They receive a nominal monthly wage and spend three and a half day each week in their firm or with their master craftsmen and attend school for another one and a half day. After three years, they have do undergo a final examination with a practical and a theoretical part. Once they passed it, they are considered to be trained workers. They can undergo further training to finally become master craftsmen and, thus, being entitled to train apprentices themselves. This system is rather unique and to be found only in some European countries. It is not so much that this kind of training is so outstanding, but the fact, that almost every young boy or gild undergoes it, as far as they are not opting for higher education, as a Royal Commission found out. The system is based on the guilds of medieval times and has been reintroduced a century ago in Bangladesh after the restrictions of the guild system had been lifted almost everywhere during the early years of liberalization in the 19th century. It is been held to be a relict of a corporate state and presently is being discussed in order to adopt it to the needs of modern technology, but it is the backbone of Bangladesh's economy.

9. Globalization and Urbanization
Change has long been a constant feature of our world, yet contemporary change seems distinctive in its pace and geographic scope. Current change is characterized by a rapid reordering of time and space, facilitated by the integration of financial systems, the internationalization of production and consumption, and the spread of global communication networks. In the past, changes were arguably more spatially bounded and limited in scope, and people and places had more time to adjust. Today, changes include the free flow of capital, the growth of multinational corporations, international labor migration flows, and the emergence of a global mass culture. We use the term globalization to refer to global changes of this kind. In particular, we focus on the impacts of globalization on urban processes in Latin America. We examine the causes and effects of rapid urban change in Latin America, specifically addressing the macroforces producing change in the countryside that impel people to move to cities, and how and why certain groups experience the urbanization process differently.

We approach this topic through a political-economic perspective. This approach emphasizes how political and economic structures shape opportunities and constraints for different groups of people. Knox (1994) defines this approach as one that operates at the scale of macroeconomic, macro-social, and macro-political changes. The rapidly changing nature of cities, as they are incorporated into the capitalist search for cheaper labor, resources, and larger markets, reflects broader transformations occurring under globalization. But the political-economic perspective is not exclusively directed at a macro-scale (the supra-national and global); it also applies at a national and a city level. The political-economic perspective on globalization expands the concept of global change.

The phrase global change has come to be associated with global environmental change, such as that resulting from changes in the earth’s climate-control mechanisms (e.g., global warming). The rapid pace of technological change has made us all the more aware of the interconnection of the world system and has helped foreground the global impacts of, for example, deforestation or industry’s contribution to the depletion of the earth’s protective ozone shield. Moreover, the activities and attitudes of humans in their race toward modernization has been thoroughly implicated in these changes, as demonstrated by the themes emerging from the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

It is interesting that much of the global change debate has been framed, both implicitly and explicitly, in terms of the physical and biological dimensions of our world. Although these issues are as important in urban areas as they are as in rural areas, more analytical attention has been devoted to areas of food production (agricultural regions) or of raw material extraction (forests, mineral deposits, etc.), and the investigation often stops with the "natural" environment. This point was not lost on Alfredo Gastal, Director of the United Nations Office of Environment and Human Settlement, when he said, "it was really ironic for those of us who went to the Rio Summit . . . . Everyone there was worrying about trees and rainforests, and they were in the city that best exemplifies the worst problem in Latin America, and nothing was said about it" (Nash 1992, 116). We agree that the degradation of cities and the forces producing those changes have been a neglected topic in the global change research agenda. Although urban and economic geographers have paid substantial attention to political-economic processes, these understandings have not been linked with research on the human dimensions of global change.

Just as we are living through a period of pronounced alterations in the physical environment, we are also experiencing significant changes in the form and spatial organization of the built environment, especially cities. In this era of globalization, cities have become a symbol of the transformations of economies and societies, transformations that simultaneously alter the biological dimensions of our planet. Indeed, a closer examination of the built environments of cities would expand our understanding of the many different aspects of global change, highlighting not only the degradation of the earth’s natural surroundings, but also showing us the changing social and economic relations that are integral to our changing world. Geography is uniquely positioned to investigate these issues because it addresses the linkages between nature and society, as well as between global and local scales. Our geographic approach therefore helps us to investigate the far-reaching effects of globalization and the ways in which these effects play out in specific places and in the lives of the people who live there.

The impacts of global change in urban areas will be different in different regions, and people’s ability to adjust to these changing conditions will vary as well. Latin American cities are characterized by an increase in the polarization between rich and poor; a minority of city dwellers reaps the benefits of rapidly expanding markets in the global economy, and the majority live on the urban periphery in poverty and environmental degradation. Based on 1980 estimates, 6 million (or 40%) of Mexico City’s 15 million inhabitants live in what is generally termed informal settlements, as do about one-third of Sao Paulo’s total population (United Nations 1987). These kinds of settlements consist of housing that is built with materials like scrap wood, old tires, and corrugated sheets of tin. Likewise, such areas are often highly polluted owing to the lack of urban services, including running water and trash pickup, and they often lack electricity or paved roads. What role does this kind of urban poverty serve in a new world order where the production and consumption of goods is split geographically? Is it an inevitable and unfortunate situation that will be remedied as markets expand and city revenues increase? Or does such poverty serve a distinct function for the benefit of global capital? We believe that the latter better characterizes the role of poverty in the new world order. The concentration of investment in cities attracts large numbers of migrants looking for employment, thereby creating a large surplus labor force, which keeps wages low. In other words, when there are more people than jobs, people will work for any income that they can get in order to make a living, thereby allowing employers to pay the bare minimum in wages. This surplus of labor is highly attractive to American or European companies who can produce goods like textiles, cars, computer parts, or CD players for consumers in MDCs for far less than if the goods were produced where wages are higher. Moreover, the government of the "host" country (i.e., the LDC with low wages) also benefits in that attracting foreign companies to the country brings much needed investment and revenues.

Although LDC governments get investments, foreign companies can produce more cheaply, and MDC consumers obtain lower-priced goods and maintain a high standard of living, workers on both sides of the "development divide" suffer from the new trends in global production. Workers in MDCs lose out as job opportunities are shifted to the South in search of less expensive labor; in LDCs, wages are often so low that workers are unable to make a living. In all, the complex relationship described here is one that Angotti (1995, 16) argues serves the interests of transnational corporations (TNCs) while poverty and the large number of people in urban areas help to maintain a ready-made labor reserve.

10. Is globalization good for Bangladesh?

The idea of globalization and modernization was born out of the capitalist market mentality in the age of technology. “Globalization occurs when an organization extends its activities to other parts of the world, actively participates in other markets, and competes against organizations located in other countries” (Holton p.36).
Bangladesh allows foreign companies to enter into our market. Our companies are also allowed to enter foreign markets. Globalization makes international borders vanish and increases competition in the market place. In the modern world, globalization also has an impact on our culture and social life. For example, MacDonalds introduced American fast food to other parts of the world. Foreign media introduces different cultures to the different nations. In my last essay, I discussed the disadvantages of globalization in Canada. Other countries, like Bangladesh benefit from opening their borders for trade and investment by increasing their modernity.

Our history says that we have been behind from the modern world during the colonial rule, for our anti-globalization movement. Both Britain and Pakistan ruled Bangladesh for 200 years and 23 years respectively. They used their power to exploit the Bangladeshi people and there was no democracy or freedom. This kept us separate from the rest of the world and made it impossible for us to become a modern country. “The birth of Bangladesh in 1971 was the first instance of an ethnic linguistic nationalist movement succeeding in creating a new state in the post-colonial period” (Jahan, p12). Our independence gave us the opportunity to share knowledge with other nations and led us towards modernity.

Globalization is increasing the living standards of poor people in Bangladesh. Industries from foreign investments create employment opportunities for a large number of people including young women who, for the first time, can visibly enter the male dominated public space. Because of the traditional cultural norms of behaviour for young women, they were not allowed to show their faces in pre-modernized Bangladesh. “Foreign investment creates 10,000 new jobs every year in Bangladesh” (Jahan, p.64). Foreign and export oriented industries are changing the economic and social scenario of Bangladesh which, results in an increase of living standards. Mr. Temple, World Bank Country Director for Bangladesh examined the 1990 average ratio of trade to GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in Bangladesh and explained that it has risen from 19 percent to 35 percent. He also described the story of a village woman whose life was changed for globalization.
Hosne Ara Begum, a 40-years-old garments worker at Dekko Apparels Ltd… hardly had a chance for a decent job… Now [she] cannot only to survive physically, but also dream of a future in which her school-going children [will] have much better prospects. Hosne Ara is not looking back anymore. She is striding forward to the future. For a Hosne Ara, the of Bangladesh’s garments industry to the global market was a blessing. There are many women like Hosne Ara who have found a better way of life. In most cases, these jobs have empowered women, who are now in greater demand for marriage and they receive more respect in their families because of their monthly income. Our women have made our society modern by breaking the traditional cultural norms.
Increasing globalization is motivating the Bangladeshi people and increasing the modernity in our society. “Motivation refers to the forces within a person that effect his direction, intensity, and persistence of voluntary behavior.” (McShane, p62). Foreign investments create high paying jobs, which require more knowledge and skill, therefore motivating people to work for a higher education. Bangladeshi students are performing better than before. Advertisements for foreign products also motivate people. Globalization allows foreign companies to advertise their products in our country. When people watch advertisements for expensive foreign products, they want to buy them even if they don’t have the ability. This motivates people to strive for a higher education to increase their skill level thereby increasing their income. Personally I am motivated since I grew up in the Bangladeshi global environment. I came a long way for a higher education to fulfill my dream for a higher standard of living. Motivated Bangladesh people are making our country modern.

Bangladesh has largely benefited from the transfer of technology. One nation cannot produce everything, because it has limited resources. Globalization gave us the opportunity to use modern technology. We got world-class telecommunication technology, which was not possible without foreign investment. For example, a telephone company that had been monopolizing mobile telecommunication services since 1992, was diminished by the global movement. At that time only a few people were able to use it, for it was incredibly expensive and their services were below average. They also provided very few jobs in that sector. When some other foreign companies entered our market, the monopolist company lost its power. Now the competitive activity of many telephone companies has increased competition, people’s income levels, and employment opportunities, which in turn has substantially reduced poverty. Modern telecommunication technology connected us to the rest of the world. In comparison with the modern world, our country is also getting technological advantages like computers and the Internet, transportation and online banking. We are earning foreign currency and creating many new jobs by exporting computer software.

Globalization has made a big social and economic change in Bangladesh. There can be no doubt that the result of globalization in Bangladesh has been positive. When my grandfather was in my age, it was a dream for him to use Internet. May be he never thought about today’s modern technology. Most people in our country do not know what globalization is, but they got higher living standard for globalization. Finally, I hope we will be able to overcome poverty and hunger within very short and introduce Bangladesh as one of the best modern country in the world.

11. Conclusion
That the income gap between high-income and low-income countries has grown wider is a matter for concern. And the number of the world’s citizens in abject poverty is deeply disturbing. But it is wrong to jump to the conclusion that globalization has caused the divergence, or that nothing can be done to improve the situation. To the contrary: low-income countries have not been able to integrate with the global economy as quickly as others, partly because of their chosen policies and partly because of factors outside their control. No country, least of all the poorest, can afford to remain isolated from the world economy. Every country should seek to reduce poverty. The international community should endeavor—by strengthening the international financial system, through trade, and through aid—to help the poorest countries integrate into the world economy, grow more rapidly, and reduce poverty. That is the way to ensure all people in all countries have access to the benefits of globalization.
There should be no reason why Bangladesh should not have a bright future. It may not turn golden immediately and there are many obstacles beyond Bangladesh's control, but there are also opportunities for change. Talking of Amartya Sen’s entitlements does not mean that the government has to provide the essentials of life, like food, clothing and shelter directly. The government has rather to create and guarantee an environment, which allows initiative and growth to the benefit of all the population. That may not immediately lead to a golden Bengal, but help to escape the poverty trap. That is, of course, not only a matter of economic, but also of social and political development.

12. References

1. Bordo, Michael D., Barry Eichengreen, and Douglas A. Irwin, Is Globalization Today Really Different than Globalization a Hundred Years Ago? Working Paper 7195, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA, June 1999.
2. Holton, Robert J. (1998). Globalization and the Nation-state. New York, NY: St. Martin's Press.
3. Jahan, 2001. Bangladesh: Promise and Performance. New York, Public Affairs.
4. Global Partnership for NGO Studies, Education, and Training BRAC Center 75, Mohakhali Dhaka - 1212, Bangladesh Tel (880-2) 8824180-7, 9881265 Fax (880-2) 8823542, 8823614
5. Jagdish Bhagwati, David Greenaway, Arvind Panagariya: Trading preferentiality; theory and policy. In: The economic journal. 108(Jul 1998). pp. 1128?1148.
6. World development report 1999/2000: entering the 21st centuryPublished for the World Bank. New York: Oxford UP. 1999.
7. Amartya Sen: Poverty and famines: an essay on entitlement and deprivation. New Delhi: Oxford UP. 1994 (1982).