Bangladesh should follow its own model to ensure economic development, eminent economist Wahiduddin Mahmud said yesterday, after receiving the Bangladesh Bank Award-2020 for his contribution to the economy.

The economic models of some East Asian nations, which were treated as Asian tigers, had earlier been considered as a development formula for other countries, he said.

"Some global agencies, including the World Bank, had advised following the economic model of the East Asian nations…But, there is no scope to ensure economic development by blindly following other countries' formulae."

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal handed over the award to Mahmud at a programme at Bangladesh Institute of Bank Management at Mirpur 2 in the capital.

"New thinking process is important for better development and Bangladesh has been doing that. The country has managed development by following its own model," said Mahmud.

The development strategy of a country always should be time-befitting and the strategy has to be changed to stay with the times, he said.

The country's commoners, including farmers, and small and medium entrepreneurs, so far used all their capacities in response to the opportunities.

The government also gave assistance, including policy support, to this end. "This is the principle of Bangladesh's development."

Economists across the globe have almost reached a consensus that there is no pre-set formula to manage a country's economic development of a country.

"Following the development model of another country does not bring any output. Bangladesh has reached a new stage of development. The global economy is changing and there are many challenges."

Ensuring technological development, building skilled human resources, and strengthening the accountability of corporate governance are essential for ensuring the next stage of economic progress, he said.

A strong financial sector should be built to tackle the volatility deriving from the global financial arena, Mahmud added.

Finance minister Kamal said the country's foreign exchange reserve would hit $50 billion within this fiscal year, which now stands at around $45 billion.

"Our debt to GDP ratio is relatively lower compared to many other countries."

The country will be able to provide loans to other countries in the quickest possible time, he said.

Kamal also thanked the central bank for nominating Mahmud for the award.

BB Governor Fazle Kabir presided over the ceremony and mentioned Mahmud's outstanding contributions in the country's economy.

Mahmud achieved his Bachelor of Arts (honours) degree in economics from Dhaka University in 1968. In 1977, he managed a Phd degree from Cambridge University.

He commenced his teaching career in the economics department at Dhaka University in 1969 and became a professor in 1984 and retired in 2011.

Mahmud played his role as a director of the central bank board between 1993 and 2007. He was also adviser of a former caretaker government.

Between 2009 and 2015, he was a member of the United Nations Committee for Development Policy and served the South Asia Network of Economic Research Institute as its chairman from 2009 to 2018.

Mahmud is currently serving the International Growth Centre as senior country adviser and is also chairman of the Bangladesh Economic Research Group.