Fakhruddin Ahmed

Summary

Fakhruddin Ahmed (born 1 May 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, civil servant, and a former governor of the Bangladesh Bank, the country's central bank.[1] He also served as the Acting Prime minister of Bangladesh.

Fakhruddin Ahmed
ফখরুদ্দীন আহমেদ
Ahmed at the World Economic Forum (2008)
Prime Minister of Bangladesh
(Acting)
In office
12 January 2007 – 6 January 2009
PresidentIajuddin Ahmed
Preceded byFazlul Haque (Acting)
Succeeded bySheikh Hasina
8th Governor of Bangladesh Bank
In office
29 November 2001 – 30 April 2005
PresidentIajuddin Ahmed
Preceded byMohammed Farashuddin
Succeeded bySalehuddin Ahmed
Personal details
Born (1940-05-01) 1 May 1940 (age 83)
Bikrampur, Bengal, British India
(now Dhaka, Bangladesh)
NationalityBritish Indian (1940–1947)
Pakistani (1947–1971)
Bangladeshi (1971–present)
SpouseTrana Halim
Alma materWilliams College
University of Dhaka
Princeton University (Ph.D.)

On 12 January 2007, he was appointed Chief Adviser (Head of the Government) of the non-party interim Caretaker government, during the 2006–2008 Bangladeshi political crisis. He continued in that post for nearly two years, a longer than usual time, but new elections were held on 29 December 2008, and the Awami League assumed power based on its majority.

Early life and career edit

Ahmed was born on 1 May 1940 in Munshiganj to Mohiuddin Ahmed. He studied economics at Dhaka University, where he obtained his BA (Hons) and MA in 1960 and 1961, respectively, standing first in his class both times.[2] He earned a master's degree in development economics from Williams College and a Ph.D. in economics from Princeton University in 1975. His doctoral dissertation was titled "Migration and employment in a multisector model; an application to Bangladesh."[3]

He then became managing director of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), the country's apex micro-finance organisation, beginning on 1 June 2005.[4]

2007 interim caretaker government edit

 
Hamid Karzai, Pervez Musharraf and Fakhruddin Ahmed at the Annual Meeting 2008 of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland

On 12 January 2007, President Iajuddin Ahmed swore him in as Chief Adviser to the Interim Caretaker Government, after the former interim government under the President was dissolved. Fakhruddin Ahmed is credited with bringing an end to the anarchy that had threatened to sweep the nation.[citation needed]

More than 160 senior politicians, top civil servants, and security officials were arrested on charges of graft and other economic crimes.[5] Included were former ministers from the two main political parties, the Awami League and the Bangladesh National Party, including former prime ministers Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia, and the former acting prime minister Fazlul Haque.[citation needed]

Ahmed fainted while giving a speech at a tree-planting event on 3 June 2007, apparently due to the heat, and was hospitalized.[6][7] He was released from the hospital later the same day and has said that he was well.[8]

References edit

  1. ^ "Fakhruddin Ahmed". The Asian Age. Bangladesh. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  2. ^ "Fakhruddin takes oath as new Chief Adviser" Archived 13 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine, The New Nation, 12 January 2007, Retrieved on 12 January 2007 UTC
  3. ^ Ahmed, Fakhruddin (1975). Migration and employment in a multisector model; an application to Bangladesh.
  4. ^ Liton, Shakhawat (13 January 2007). "Fakhruddin new CA". The Daily Star. Retrieved 12 January 2007.
  5. ^ "Corruption has emerged as a great threat". Time. 22 March 2007. Archived from the original on 12 May 2007.
  6. ^ Ahmed, Parveen (3 June 2007). "Report: Bangladeshi Leader Faints". The Washington Post. Associated Press.
  7. ^ "Bangladesh interim head collapses". BBC News. 3 June 2007.
  8. ^ "Head of Bangladesh's caretaker government leaves hospital", Xinhua (People's Daily Online), 4 June 2007.

External links edit

  • Fakhruddin Ahmed on Banglapedia.
  • Q&A: Bangladesh's Leader Fakhruddin Ahmed, Time.
Political offices
Preceded by Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Acting

2007–2009
Succeeded by