How Bangladesh has arrived on the global map at 50

A cast of dynamic Bangladeshi entrepreneurs and intellectuals tell the story of a nation on the upsurge, that has emerged from a difficult past to a prosperous and nuanced presen

 

It’s almost 9 pm and the air is cool and crisp. On the 13th floor of the Shadhinata Tower in Dhaka sits Kamal Quadir, founder and CEO of bKash — arguably one of Bangladesh’s most popular indigenous mobile payment services. Far below, one can hear the muted honking on the arterial roads of Dhaka, choked with serpentine traffic, even as the illuminated glass facades of buildings twinkle in the distance.Quadir’s rooftop office overlooks the Tejgaon airfield, which was the Dhaka base of the Pakistan Air Force in 1971, and was bombed by the Indian Air Force — a key point in the Liberation War.