Many people think of the Republic of Bangladesh as "the poorest country in the world." And you haven't been to Bangladesh, and you probably don't hear much about it ...?
This time, Kimura (male in his thirties), a member of Our reports on his first visit to Bangladesh and what he felt in the city and countryside of Bangladesh.
* This is a visit to the company training for 3 nights and 4 days from April 25 to 28, 2019.
Midnight Dhaka International Airport with horns
I boarded the plane at Narita Airport at 17:00.
Then, I arrived at Dhaka International Airport in Bangladesh via Thailand at 1:00 (local time) the next day.
The first thing I heard after leaving the immigration gate was the loud horn sound.
Even though it was 1:00 am, there were cars, cars, and cars outside the airport, and the scenery was so lively that I couldn't believe it was midnight.
According to what I hear, until a dozen years ago, there were only bicycles and three-wheeled vehicles with engines, but with the rapid development of the last few years, the number of cars owned has increased dramatically.
Especially Japanese used cars are popular and seem to be imported in large quantities.
However, compared to the increase in cars, the infrastructure such as roads and traffic lights is underdeveloped, causing chronic congestion in the city. So, the horn is ringing here and there, but it's still lively ... (The mystery of why the horn is ringing so much will be solved the next day).
We managed to get out of the hustle and bustle with a car arranged by a local companion and arrived at the hotel. I went to bed as if I fell down.
If it changes, the traffic rules
Breakfast is one of the most enjoyable mornings in a foreign country.
Breakfast at the hotel is buffet style. I realize that the stir-fried vegetables are also curry-flavored because I came to Bangladesh, which is also a neighboring country of India.
And the tea is delicious.
Even if you drink black tea outside, it costs about 3 to 5 taka (5 to 7 yen in Japanese yen), which is cheaper than Japanese coffee starting from 100 yen.
After breakfast, if you look at the town from the hotel before departure, you can see bicycles, motorcycles, three-wheeled mopeds, cars, buses, and cows passing through the road at intervals of a few centimeters.
I'm going to the last minute with my breathing, but what makes it possible is the horn that always sounds when everyone slips through, and signals the surrounding cars like "I'm going through the side now!" It is said that it is issuing.
Although it is a horn that hardly sounds in Japan, it has become an important "communication tool" here in Bangladesh. (So it doesn't matter even at midnight ...)
"Nabisco" in Bangladesh
This time, as it was a training trip, I visited a factory that manufactures Euglena
Its name is "Nabisco".
However, it is a different company from Nabisco, which is known in Japan, and is a long-established company that ranks 4th to 5th in sales of sweets in Bangladesh (actually, it is older than Nabisco in Japan and the United States).
Ali, who is the managing director at the factory, welcomed me.
A person who understands the importance of the GENKI program and promotes the underwriting of local production of Euglena
First, after receiving an explanation of the factory, we went to a factory tour.
At the factory, it was said that the production line was operated by switching the items to be produced on that day according to the plan, and it was uncertain whether or not the production of Euglena
However, I was lucky enough to see the production line because I Euglena
Euglena cookies are Euglena Euglena Co., Ltd. on Ishigaki Island to Bangladesh and processing it into cookies that are easy for children to eat at this factory.
I also tried the hot freshly baked cookies that I can't usually taste, but the sweetness was just right and the taste was warm.
At the factory, men were in charge of baking and quality inspection, and women were in charge of packaging.
Since the working women looked like junior high school students and high school students, I asked, "Are they part-time students?", But they are all over 18 years old.
From the Japanese sense, they were all surprisingly thin and I had the impression that they were short.
Studies have shown that one in four children under the age of five in Bangladesh is malnourished.
I knew the results of this survey since I was in Japan, but I was convinced that the problem was some underprivileged children.
However, the bodies of adult women working in the capital city of Dhaka, that is, those who live in the city center and have a regular job, are very thin and small in a relatively stable situation. I felt that malnutrition was not part of the problem.
So what do street children look like?
It will be known at the next visit.