The Political Economy of Policy Response to COVID-19: The Case of Bangladesh

Abstract

This paper examines the response of the Government of Bangladesh to COVID-19 from a political economy lens. We argue that the support package implemented by the government had a distinct bias that went against the interests of the poorer segments of the society but conformed neatly with the government’s quest for political legitimacy. Our analysis finds that the economic support package designed and implemented by the government was heavily biased toward growth-orientation to the relative neglect of protection-orientation, with seriously adverse consequences for the well-being of the people and the bias resides in the realm of political economy of governance. JEL Classification: H12, I18, I38, O40, O53