Ahsan H Mansur becomes BB governor

The government has appointed Ahsan H Mansur as the new governor of the Bangladesh Bank for next four years. 

The Financial Institutions Division of the finance ministry announced the appointment in a circular issued today (13 August).

He will succeed Abdur Rouf Talukder. 

According to the regulations for appointment as central bank governor, Ahsan H Mansur will have to retire from the public service and abandon all work-ties with all other institutions and associations.  

According to the Bangladesh Bank (Amendment) Act, 2020, the government appoints a governor for a term of four years and the governor can serve as the governor until the age of 67.  

However, the age limit for the post of governor of the Bangladesh Bank is likely to be removed soon, high-level sources of the financial institution division informed TBS.

Dr Mansur started his career as a lecturer, Department of Economics, Dhaka University in 1976. 

He left for Canada for higher studies in economics in the same year, according to the website of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. 

As a graduate student and research assistant, he was also offering regular economics courses at the undergraduate level at the University of Western Ontario, Canada (1978-81). 

He then joined the International Monetary Fund under its Economist Program in 1981, and thereafter completed his PhD in Economics (on general equilibrium analysis) from the University of Western Ontario in 1982.

During his long career at the IMF, Dr Mansur worked in Middle Eastern, Asian, African and Central American countries. 

He worked in important functional departments (Fiscal Affairs and Policy Review and Development departments) and area departments (Middle East and Central Asia and Asian departments) of the IMF. 

He also served as the IMF Senior Resident Representative to Pakistan during 1998-01 and as the fiscal adviser to the minister of finance, Government of Bangladesh (1989-91). 

During his assignment in Bangladesh, Dr Mansur was primarily involved with the successful introduction of Value Added Tax in Bangladesh in 1991. 

Most recently, he served as the Division Chief of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Division and was the IMF Mission Chief for Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman. 

After taking early retirement from the IMF, with a view to establishing an institute aimed at policy analysis, in coordination with other professionals, Dr Mansur joined the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh as its founder director and executive director.

Dr Mansur has published extensively in various prestigious journals and has been a prolific author.