Experts here have stressed the need for working out a national security strategy based on a broad spectrum of security concerns, including civil, military, political, economic, energy, environmental and human security.
In his deliberation of the Shaheed Colonel Jamil Ahmed Memorial Lecture 2014, organised by Asiatic Society of Bangladesh at its auditorium on Thursday, Lt Gen (retd) ATM Zahirul Alam said, “National security strategy for Bangladesh should include policies and strategies on security and national development matters based on the broader concept of security.”
“The modern concept of national security is broad and all-encompassing one. Apart from military and civil security, it includes political security, economic security, energy security, environment security and human security,” he said.
Zahirul Alam, a former Commandant of the National Defence College, observed that threats to nations are multidimensional these days that call for collective, collaborative and cooperative efforts and responses from the governments at national, regional and global levels.
He also stressed the need for having national security architecture for the proper formulation and implementation of a National Security Strategy (NSS) in the country.
“A study of the architecture of national security management of United States of America and India indicates that an apex body at political, an agency at functional level and a set of procedure and process are needed for the management of national security and NSS,” he said.
“The national security management architecture of Bangladesh is not formalised as yet except that the Prime Minister has an Adviser on National Security,” Zahirul noted.
He recommended that the government form a cabinet committee on national security as well as an apex agency for functional management of national security.
The security expert also suggested establishing a national committee to recommend an appropriate model and frame a draft law for the formation of the apex agency for functional management of national security.
Chairperson of the Trust Management Committee for Social Science of Asiatic Society of Bangladesh Prof Akmal Hussain and its convener Prof AKM Golam Rabbani also spoke on the occasion.
