Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus To Lead Bangladesh Interim Government

Bangladesh’s Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus will head the country’s interim government after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stepped down and fled the country amid a mass uprising against her rule led mostly by students. The announcement early on August 7, came from Joynal Abedin, the press secretary of President Mohammed Shahabuddin.

Interim government in Bangladesh

The decision to name Prof Yunus as chief adviser of the interim government followed a meeting between President Mohammed Shahabuddin, military leaders and student leaders. “When the students who sacrificed so much are requesting me to step in at this difficult juncture, how can I refuse?” Prof Yunus had said.

Protest in Bangladesh

The protests in Bangladesh began in early July with demands from university students to abolish quotas in civil service jobs, but snowballed into a broader anti-government movement. In all, more than 400 people are believed to have died in clashes between government forces and protesters.

Increasing criticism in Bangladesh

Even as Bangldesh’s economy grew in the past decade, the former PM came under increasing criticism for smothering her critics and jailing her political opponsents. Some of them, such as ex-PM Khaleda Zia and activist Ahmad Bin Quasem, were released soon after Ms Hasina’s hasty exit.

Main opposition party  in Bangladesh

Ms Zia chairs the main opposition, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which boycotted elections in 2014 and again in 2024, saying free and fair polls were not possible under Ms Hasina.

Who is Mohammad Yunus?

Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel laureate who is also known as the “banker to the poorest of the poor” and was once called a “bloodsucker” by Hasina. Yunus, 83, is a well-known critic and opponent of Hasina. He called her resignation the country’s “second liberation day.” An economist and banker by profession, Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for pioneering the use of microcredit to help impoverished people particularly women. The Nobel Peace Prize committee credited Yunus and his Grameen Bank “for their efforts to create economic and social development from below.”

Founder of Grameen bank

Yunus founded Grameen Bank in 1983 to provide small loans to entrepreneurs who would not normally qualify to receive them. The bank’s success in lifting people out of poverty led to similar microfinancing efforts in other countries.