Rule of Law

Violence against children emerged as another pressing issue. The committee raised alarms over sexual violence, particularly against boys, gender-based violence, corporal punishment, and online abuse.

Experts warn that slowing global growth and elevated price levels could combine in a scenario akin to stagflation, while debt vulnerabilities across public, corporate and household sectors could amplify financial instability.

The UN report, issued on January 13, finds that sexual violence was “part of a deliberate, widespread, and systemic pattern of violations” by state security forces, and “may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

Health minister Sudha Gautam, a senior gynaecologist herself, is positioned to drive change. Experts urge her to prioritise regulation, monitoring, and awareness campaigns.

Nepal’s battle against child labour remains a complex struggle of law, tradition, and socioeconomic fragility, even as pockets of progress emerge.

On January 9, 2026, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), publicly voiced deep concerns about the country’s deteriorating security situation ahead of the polls, expressing dissatisfaction with the performance of law enforcement agencies.

The Global Tobacco Industry Interference Index 2025 underscores that tobacco industry influence remains a formidable barrier to public health policy in Bangladesh and worldwide. While some countries demonstrate notable progress, Bangladesh’s mid-to-high interference score suggests that institutional reforms and stricter safeguards are urgently needed.

According to the police, 1,663 scam cases were reported, with losses exceeding MVR 22.7 million, of which MVR 8.5 million has now been retrieved. Before the centre’s formation, authorities were only able to recover about two per cent of stolen funds.