Strategic Planning to Promote Foreign Remittance: Major sources of foreign currency and strategies for Bangladesh

It is evident that a large part of remittance sent by non-resident Bangladeshisis still coming through the unofficial Hundi or Hawala system. In addition, a major part of the remittance sent goes to unproductive sectors that affect inflation adversely. Under the positive guidelines of the Bangladesh Bank, private banks in Bangladesh are workingto beat the Hundi system and winning with help of technology. At the same time, theCentral Bank and the private banks are also working together to turn foreign remittanceinto private investments that could help turn the economy of the country around. The paper also examines the role of the Government, particularly in the context of the
country’s econom
ic diplomacy. It brings the role of Bangladesh missions aboard into focus and reveals their deficiencies in comparison to the missions of other countries that send manpower abroad. It shows that as a consequence of weakness in economicdiplomacy, particularly in the way the missions function abroad, the Bangladeshiexpatriates suffer very badly. The paper makes a few key suggestions so that the lipservice that is seen from the Government for the expatriates is translated into somethingmeaningful. It recommends a demonstration of political will at the level of the Prime Minister in order to realize the full potentials of the huge foreign remittance for thebenefit of the country as well as for the benefit of those who literally put their lives online for the country