ABSTRACT
Bangladesh is often described as the "largest poorest" nation in the world, and the title of one book on Bangladeshi political development refers to the country as "the least developed nation. This chapter looks at the problems and prospects of Bangladesh as it charts its difficult course forward. Bangladesh must nurture the spirit of warmth and cooperation, more than anything else, as it ventures to the next level of modernization and development. In the context of the economic and political challenges it faces, Bangladesh has to be careful in terms of policies and directions it chooses so that it may build a prosperous and stable future. Bangladesh is a nation with few natural resources beyond its fertile soil and abundant natural gas. The Human Development Index published by the United Nations Development Programme in 2011, which ranked countries according to a composite index covering issues relating to health, education, and income, ranked Bangladesh 146 out of 187 countries.
