A woman weaving a nakshi kantha Syed Zakir Hossain/Dhaka Tribune

Especially for women entrepreneurs, who face great difficulties in access to finance

Experts on Sunday said that ensuring transparent responses, based on data-based policies, were essential to address Covid-induced challenges for cottage, micro, small and medium enterprises (CMSMEs), especially women entrepreneurs, who have been facing multiple barriers in accessing finance from the government’s stimulus packages.

They also said that the Covid-19 pandemic posed severe challenges across all areas of research and public policies across the globe, especially in Bangladesh, making policy formulation equally difficult.

They made their remarks based on a study undertaken by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), during a policy workshop organized by the think tank in partnership with The Asia Foundation Bangladesh under the Women's Economic Empowerment through Strengthening Market Systems (WEESMS) titled "Covid-induced Stimulus Packages for SMEs & Women-led Enterprises: Exploring Research Policy Interlinkages."

Fahmida Khatun, executive director of CPD, who also moderated the discussion, underscored the importance to examine the linkage between public policies and research during the pandemic and to define how the challenges of the marginalized businesses should be addressed.

The keynote presentation was made by Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director, CPD where Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Md Tajul Islam attended as chief guest.

Kazi Nabil Ahmed, MP, member of the parliamentary standing committee on foreign affairs, also attended the program as special guest.

More to follow...