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washington — Once hailed for its strides in economic growth and social advancement, Bangladesh now grapples with an uncertain trajectory as its faltering economy threatens to reverse hard-won gains in poverty alleviation. Recent data from the national statistics agency reveals a stark reality: The economy is falling significantly short of expectations. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, the country's gross domestic product, or GDP, expanded by 3.78% in the second quarter of the current fiscal year, a notable decline from the 7% growth recorded in the corresponding period the prior year. With inflation hovering around 10%, the economic landscape appears bleak. Industrial output grew 3.24%, which compared poorly with 10% growth in the same period last year. Similarly, the service sector grew 3.06% in the second quarter of fiscal 2024, less than half its growth rate a year ago. These two sectors together account for more than 80% of the economy. Such sluggish performance has caused the International Monetary Fund, or IMF, to revise its forecast for the year to 5.7% – lowered from the 6% growth it had predicted for Bangladesh earlier. Economists such as Debapriya Bhattacharya, distinguished fellow at the Center for Policy Dialogue in Dhaka, are concerned that low growth will mean fewer job opportunities and lower income, which would hit hardest the people who have the least. "An increase in the number of people in poverty is a high possibility, and a deepening of inequality in income and consumption," Bhattacharya told VOA. However, Bangladeshi Finance Minister Hasan Mahmood Ali has dismissed fears about the IMF revision, saying reforms undertaken by the government "are beginning to bear fruit." Bangladesh made significant progress over the past decade, bringing down the poverty level from 41.5% in 2006 to 18.7% in 2022. The economic slowdown has not come as a surprise to Bhattacharya, who said such figures could be predicted for some time. "The main reason is, in order to have growth we need investment, and [to] allow the investors to import goods, but we are not able to do that because of lack of foreign currency." Foreign currency reserves have come under pressure since the economy reopened after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the central bank's figures, reserves declined from a high of $48 billion in August 2021 to below $20 billion in April 2024. Bhattacharya said the high rate of inflation, which has affected people across the board, but particularly middle- and low-income groups, has seriously slowed demand and consumption. According to government figures, inflation in Bangladesh is currently running above 9%. Economic analysts such as Mamun Rashid, however, believe the real figure is much higher. Currently the chairman at Financial Excellence Ltd., a private company, he recently retired as managing partner at Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Dhaka, and he earlier was managing director at Citibank N.A in Bangladesh, among other jobs. Rashid said consumption in Bangladesh is driven by export earnings, inflow of remittances sent by migrant workers and money circulation. While exports and remittances have held steady, money circulation has been squeezed by the central bank's efforts to combat inflation by raising interest rates. The veteran banker said corruption and weak regulation were key factors underpinning the foreign currency crisis, which has hit business hard. "When there is a lot of money floating around from corruption or undocumented work, it fuels capital flight and reduces inward flow of dollars," he said. According to Washington-based anti-corruption watchdog Global Financial Integrity, from 2004 to 2013, Bangladesh lost an average of $5.5 billion annually through illicit outflows. Bangladesh also does not receive all of its export receipts, as billions of dollars are siphoned off annually through trade misinvoicing. Before the pandemic hit in early 2020, Bangladesh grew at an average of more than 6%, fueled by garment exports, agriculture and huge government investment in infrastructure such as bridges, roads and highways. The World Bank in 2021 called it "one of the great development stories." The growth was achieved despite several structural flaws in the economy that are becoming more visible, according to Bhattacharya. The current government in its three successive terms in office (since 2009) has not increased private investment's share of the GDP. The private investment-to-GDP ratio has remained at 23% for 13 to 14 years. Foreign direct investment has remained below 2% of GDP. Despite the problems, international development institutions such as the World Bank, IMF and the U.N. Development Program remain on board. "They still believe in Bangladesh. That's why Bangladesh can count on around $10 billion worth of multilateral aid," Rashid said. While Rashid is optimistic that export earnings and remittances from the 6 million Bangladeshis working abroad can increase and reignite the engine of growth, Bhattacharya says the current "growth narrative" is no longer sustainable without major reforms in the banking, financial and energy sectors. "The time of reckoning has come," he said. This story originated in VOA's Bangla Service.

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In a historic moment, Iran launches a direct attack on Israel with hundreds of missiles, resulting in minimal damage. In Nigeria, the fate of dozens of young girls kidnapped by Boko Haram remains a mystery ten years after hundreds were abducted. This week on the Inside Story: Mideast Tension.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

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CORTE, CORSICA   — The colorful graffiti sprinkled across this mountain town offers one clue about some political sentiments here. "Liberty for Stephanu Ori," is plastered on one peeling wall, referring to a Corsican militant arrested last month. Another pays tribute to nationalist Yvan Colonna, killed in jail where he was serving time for the assassination of a top French official. Still others offer the shorthand call — AFF — for French to leave the island. Perched on a hill of rugged northern Corsica, Corte is the undisputed cultural and political heart of this French Mediterranean island, which has long fought for greater self-rule from Paris. Today, some some are hopeful that could happen following an agreement last month to insert language in France's constitution recognizing "an autonomous status" for Corsica. Top Corsican official Gilles Simeoni called the March agreement — since approved by Corsica's legislature — a "decisive step," but cautioned it was just a beginning. The measure still needs to be approved by both France's lower house and Senate, where right-wing lawmakers fiercely oppose it. Even if the measure is approved, it is unclear just how much of a difference it will make. "It's a step, not necessarily a big one," said Andre Fazi, a political scientist at the University of Corte. "it could end up making no real change, with the central power retaining the final say when it comes to Corsican national assembly decisions." "What is clear is nobody is thrilled about this reform," he added of the mixed reaction. "Those who support a strong French state will be against this reform. Those who support Corsican independence will say it doesn't go far enough." Even some Corsicans, fiercely proud of their identity, are worried about giving local authorities too much say on some matters. "I am for Corsican autonomy, but I have real questions about the competence of those managing Corsica today," said Dominique, a Corsican retiree and former senior French public servant. He declined to give his last name because of the sensitive topic. "If they can't manage basic things like garbage, why give them more power?" Paoli's legacy The fleeting years when Corsican did have self rule — more than two centuries ago — are cemented in Corte's history. Dominating a central town square is the statue of 18th century independence leader Pascal Paoli. A key figure in first ousting Genoa then briefly France from the island, Paoli created the Anglo-Corsican kingdom, with its capital based here. He helped usher in schools and a university — and drafted a constitution that inspired that of the United States — before going into exile and dying in Britain, in 1807. By that time, Corsica was firmly back in France's orbit, under the rule of another Corsican — Napoleon Bonaparte. At Corte's Pascal Paoli University, a few minutes' walk from Paoli's statue, graduate student Andrea Nanglard said she is not interested in politics, but supports more autonomy for the island. "I consider myself more Corsican than French," said Nanglard, who was born on the French continent but moved to Corsica as a teenager, and speaks the Corsican language. "But I'm not sure if greater autonomy would really change things." Another Corsican student, Julien Preziose, also backs inserting a Corsican autonomy reference in the French constitution. "I think it's important to fight for the Corsican identity, because otherwise it could disappear," said Preziose, who is studying ancient Corsican history and archeology. "But it's not like we think about being Corsican all the time. It's when we leave Corsica, when that happens." In the 19th and 20th centuries, many Corsicans did leave in search of work. Some headed to the Americas; others to French colonies or the mainland. Today, some are coming back to retire, and a few to rediscover their roots. New schools have opened teaching the Corsican language to youngsters. But among Corsica's 350,000 residents, many are also French retirees from the mainland. Foreign tourists are similarly flooding in, lured by the island's beauty. Their arrival has notched up real estate prices and stirred tensions. "Corsicans are no longer speaking Corsican, they're losing their roots, their history," said Dominique, the retired public servant. In the village where he now lives, he said, young people can no longer afford to buy property. "Corsicans are forced to sell their land because they can no longer make ends meet." Growing divide Calls for independence resurfaced in the 1970s, with the creation of the National Liberation Front of Corsica, or FLNC, which staged attacks against symbols of French governance. The most spectacular was the 1998 assassination of French prefect Claude Erignac, the island's top French state official. The FLNC formally laid down its arms in 2014, although the nationalist movement remains active — especially in Corte. Corsican crime families are also anchored into the landscape. While nationalist bombings and other attacks have largely ended, tensions still simmer. The 2022 killing by a fellow prisoner of Yvan Colonna, serving a life sentence over Erignac's killing, sparked protests and rioting in Corte and elsewhere on the island. Meanwhile, Fazi, the political scientist, believes the fracture between Corsicans and mainland French has grown bigger in recent years. Common memories that bound the two populations a few decades ago — military service, World War II or serving in former French colonies — have now faded. "There are a lot of Corsican youth today who don't feel themselves to be at all French," he said. "And there's been a lot of immigration to Corsica by people who do feel themselves to be French. And that kind of psychological rupture between the two could be a worry for the state." Even so, France's highly centralized government has loosened up modestly in recent years, including granting Corsica greater political say through a series of small steps. In 2015, Corsican nationalists came to power in regional elections for the first time. The island's legislature is today dominated by autonomists, like Simeoni, who want more local powers but not a full split with France. If France's parliament greenlights this new autonomy measure, the island's registered voters — both Corsican and French — also will have their say, said President Emmanuel Macron. The majority of both groups, said analyst Fazi, would likely support the measure — one key element bringing the two groups together. "Autonomy has become mainstream — it's not subversive like it was 40 years ago," he said. Still, Fazi added, if the autonomy measure amounts to little more than constitutional language with no substance, Corsica could see new tensions. "The more the reform is timid, the more it could reinforce the contestation" against the French state, he said. "We may not see a big resurgence of attacks, but more and more violent protests."

abuja, nigeria — Nigeria has been Africa’s largest or second-largest oil exporter for years, but relies heavily on imports to meet local energy needs. The government is trying to change that, saying the country’s four moribund oil refineries will be revived and put back in operation. This week, authorities also announced a new policy that oil producers must sell a share of their crude oil to local refiners before they are permitted to export crude. Nigeria’s petroleum regulatory commission announced the new Domestic Crude Oil Supply Obligation (DCSO) during a meeting with industry players. It's part of an amendment to Nigeria’s Petroleum Industry Act of 2021. Under the policy, Nigerian oil producers are allowed to export crude only after meeting their supply obligations to local refiners. The measure will take effect in the second half of the year, but it does not specify what quantity of crude must be supplied to local refineries. Authorities said the objectives of the guideline are to bolster Nigeria’s refining capacity, improve the oil industry and earn foreign exchange. Public affairs analyst Jaye Gaskiya said it was the right move. "In the current situation globally, this is actually going to turn out much more beneficial to both the producers and refiners in the country," Gaskiya said. "Essentially this is designed to ease the problem of supply to the local refineries so that they don't become redundant. The second thing is that it is also designed in such a manner to ease the pressure on the naira," which is the currency of Nigeria. According to the regulations, payments for crude to domestic refiners can be made in dollars, naira or a combination of both. Nigeria relies heavily on imports to meet the population’s energy needs. Analysts say refining crude oil locally could reverse this trend. But oil and gas analyst Toyin Akinosho said he had concerns. "In principle, I do not have a problem with it, but we need to be very careful about the foreign exchange implications and also the volumes that are going out," he said. "My challenge has always been, if you are overzealous about certain regulations, you can burn your fingers. In an era of very low forex [currency trading] and this being the major avenue for inflow into the country, you have to find a way of managing it." The new measure includes penalties for oil producers who divert crude oil or refiners who fail to meet payment obligations. But Gaskiya said there were some loose strings to the rule. "The regulation says it is on the basis of willing buyer and willing seller, and that's quite tricky," Gaskiya said. "A situation where you have the suppliers, for instance, being unwilling, what are you then going to do as the regulator? So those are the things that the regulator needs to be on the lookout for." The refineries in Nigeria, including the latest one built by Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote, will have a combined processing capacity of 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day when rehabilitated. While experts have doubts the new guidelines will be effective, authorities are optimistic Nigeria is getting closer to its goal of having a self-sufficient energy sector.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan travels to Iraq next week for the first time in 12 years. Erdogan is looking for Iraqi support in his war on Kurdish rebels based in Iraq and as Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, the visit also aims to counter Iran’s influence.

Tehran, Iran — A senior Revolutionary Guards general threatened on Thursday to target Israel's "nuclear facilities" if it strikes Iran’s sites, state media reported, anticipating retaliation for Tehran's weekend attack. Israel has vowed a response to the Iranian aerial attack, which was mostly intercepted. World leaders have urged de-escalation. Violence involving Iran-aligned groups across the Middle East has soared since the start of the Israel-Hamas war with the Tehran-backed Palestinian militant group's October 7 attack. Tehran's first direct attack on Israel, launched late Saturday, was in retaliation for an April 1 airstrike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus that killed seven members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two generals. Israeli officials have not said when or where the country would retaliate, but Ahmad Haghtalab, the Guards' head of nuclear protection and security, said Iran would reciprocate any attack on nuclear sites. "If the Zionist regime [Israel wants to take action against our nuclear centers and facilities, it will definitely and surely face our reaction," the official news agency IRNA quoted Haghtalab as saying. "For the counterattack, the nuclear facilities of the [Israeli] regime will be targeted and operated upon with advanced weaponry." His warning came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel reserves "the right to protect itself" following the Iranian attack with hundreds of drones and missiles. Haghtalab said the threat of an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities could lead Tehran "to revise and deviate from the declared nuclear policies and considerations," without elaborating. The Islamic republic, which has always insisted its nuclear program is peaceful and denies seeking an atomic bomb, has accused archenemy Israel of sabotage attacks on its facilities and assassinations of nuclear scientists in recent years. Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in 2019 that Iran could have developed nuclear weapons but would not do so because Islam forbids their use. U.S. and other Western officials have said that the continued expansion of Iran's nuclear program suggests military aims. In 2018 the United States unilaterally withdrew from a landmark deal meant to curb Iran's nuclear activities while providing some relief from crippling Western sanctions. Since then, Iran has gradually reduced its commitment to the terms imposed by the 2015 accord, and diplomatic efforts to revive it have long stalled as some sanctions have been re-imposed. The majority of Iran's known nuclear sites, including the uranium enrichment plants at Natanz and Fordo, are located in the country's center. Iran's only nuclear power plant is located in the southern port city of Bushehr. According to Haghtalab, Iran has identified Israeli nuclear centers and holds "necessary information of all targets." Israel is widely known to have nuclear weapons but has never admitted so.

G7 countries meet in Italy to impose new sanctions on Iran and discuss security issues facing the world as the crisis in the Middle East threatens to grow. An update from Kyiv on attacks in Crimea and a look at a Ukraine aid bill in congress. Plus, updates on upcoming elections in Chad and India.

Gaborone, Botswana   — A coalition of churches in Botswana has voiced its opposition to parliament's latest effort to amend the constitution to include gay rights. Botswana’s minister for state president, Kabo Morwaeng, introduced a constitutional amendment bill for the first reading Wednesday. Among proposed amendments is the inclusion of a clause that would “protect and prohibit the discrimination of intersex persons and persons with a disability.”  However, churches are opposed to the move promoting gay rights.  Abraham Kedisang is a pastor at the Apostolic Faith Mission, a church that issued a statement denouncing the effort to amend the constitution.   "As the AFM Botswana, we express our grave concerns regarding the tabling and ultimate debate by parliament of these proposed amendments without the benefit of the people's engagement and contribution,” Kedisang said. “These provisions portend grave threat for our Christian way of life, our democracy and, indeed, our republic as we have known it over the many decades.”  Botswana’s High Court decriminalized same-sex relations in 2019, after a legal challenge. In July 2023, the government proposed a bill to incorporate gay rights into the constitution, but hundreds of opponents protested the development.    Kedisang said the church is right to challenge the proposed changes, despite the court’s 2019 pronouncement.  “The disturbing provision in the constitution [Amendment] bill 2024, No. 4 of 2024, which threatens to destroy the cardinal structure of family life at the heart of Botswana's cherished Christian way of life, through the bringing of ‘intersex’ legal provision that seeks to change the binary male and female structure of our society established and enacted by the almighty God,” Kedisang said.    Lesbians, Gay and Bisexuals of Botswana (LEGABIBO) supported the court challenge in 2019. The group’s chief executive, Thato Moruti, says the constitutional amendments are about protecting human rights and are not a religious issue.  “The nation must separate religious beliefs from human rights matters,” Moruti said. “This issue of decriminalization is a human rights matter, it is not a religious matter. It is an issue that is concerned with reducing systematic disadvantages on other people, especially the LGBTQI persons.”   The government filed a challenge against the 2019 judgment, but the Court of Appeal upheld the initial ruling in 2021.  Moruti said members of the National Assembly have a duty to protect disadvantaged communities.  “As international beacon of democracy, it is very important that as Botswana, we must recognize that this democracy also includes minority groups such as the LGBTQI community. It is important for legislators to remember that their democratic oath is to protect those who are unable to speak for themselves, including members of the LGBTQI community,” Moruti said.  Before the Botswana courts decriminalized homosexuality, the offense was punishable by up to seven years in jail.  Homosexuality remains illegal in most African countries, with some, like Uganda, imposing stiff penalties, including the death sentence.

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LONDON — Right-wing politicians in Europe called for an end to Western support for Ukraine in its war against Russian invaders, as hundreds of people gathered in Brussels this week for the European National Conservatism Conference, which ended Wednesday. An effort by the Brussels mayor to shut down the conference on security grounds prompted accusations of an assault on the right to free speech. Orban speech Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban topped the list of speakers at the event. In his sights were familiar foes: the European Union, immigration and multiculturalism. “I think that nations have the right to decide about their own future. So, if somebody would like to make an attempt to create a mixed society, a Christian-based with Muslim community, and as a liberal thing that the outcome will be something good  — do it, it is your fate, your future — but don’t force us to do so,” Orban told the conference. “We think that mixture of two civilizations will not result in good things.”   Ukraine aid Just hours before attending a special meeting of EU heads of state at the nearby European Council, the Hungarian leader criticized Western support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian invaders and said his country would maintain ties with Moscow. “Ukraine is now just the protectorate of the West. So, without getting the money and weapons from the European Union and United States, Ukraine as a state would cease to exist,” he said Wednesday, largely echoing Kremlin talking points. “So, it is not a sovereign state anymore.” ‘Right-wing playbook’ Orban has become the figurehead leader of the European right, according to Georgios Samaras, a political analyst and expert on the European far right at Kings College London. “Viktor Orban can be perhaps the one strongman that unites the far right — as right-wing forces and central right-wing forces follow his lead because he's highly successful in pushing an authoritarian practice and authoritarian regime in his own country. I believe that the far right is right now trying to use the same playbook,” Samaras told VOA. “The far-right danger is here,” Samaras added. “But it was always here and now it's openly normalized by the elites who are willing to collaborate with those political actors and entities in order to govern and probably abuse democratic institutions.” EU elections Despite widespread criticism from both European and American allies, Orban denies undermining democratic institutions in Hungary. The conservative conference was staged ahead of European Parliament elections scheduled in June. “This is the consolidation of different manifestos into one. And usually when these conferences take place, they're trying to agree on ideological pledges for the next few years,” Samaras said. Police action The conference was almost cancelled when Belgian police blocked access to the venue Tuesday after Mayor Emir Kir issued an order to shut it down over public security concerns. An emergency court ruling on Tuesday evening, however, overturned the mayor’s order. Nigel Farage, a former member of the European parliament and campaigner for Britain’s EU exit who was speaking at the conference, said the mayor’s actions were an example of what they labelled left-wing “cancel culture.” “We can see that legally held opinions from people who are going to win national elections is no longer acceptable here, in Brussels, the home of globalism, because if you don't agree with ever closer union, you must be a bad dude,” Farage told reporters Tuesday. The effort to close the conference was criticized by politicians from across the political spectrum, including Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, who described the move as “unacceptable.” Polls suggest center-right and far-right parties are set to gain seats at the June European elections. An EU survey published this week   suggests that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and European defense and security, are high on the list of voter priorities.

Right-wing politicians, academics and campaigners from across Europe gathered in Brussels this week for a two-day National Conservatism Conference that organizers said was aimed at “preserving the nation-state in Europe.” As Henry Ridgwell reports, an effort by the Brussels mayor to shut down the conference prompted accusations of an assault on the right to free speech.