The Mela comprises a series of themed and solo exhibitions, by international and Bangladeshi artists at venues across downtown Dhaka. Until 2024, Bangladeshi artists had to contend with the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's authoritarian government, which monopolised access to funding and foreign collaboration. Many arts institutions were turned into propaganda machines, as Hasina's cultural officials 'just wanted to please the national leader,' one Bangladeshi artist told the Financial Times last year.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
A lack of insurance coverage in Southeast Asia threatens an increasingly important hub for supply chains, as the region is battered by tropical storms, major flooding, and other natural disasters. Total losses from natural disasters across Asia-Pacific last year totaled $73 billion, yet just $9 billion was insured, according to Germany reinsurance company Munich Re. That makes Asia one of the world's least insured regions against natural disasters.
As of February 2026, the island is offering those who can work remotely for companies outside of Sri Lanka the chance to apply for a year-long digital nomad visa, so here is everything you need to know about how to apply if you're eligible. Firstly, you need to be at least 18 years old and earning a minimum of €1,700 (or around $2,000) per month.
Construction has begun on the first Adaptation Fortress in southwest Bangladesh, a climate-resilient shelter designed to protect communities from both cyclones and heatwaves. The Jameel Observatory-Climate Resilience Early Warning System Network announced the initiative, which transforms existing school-based cyclone shelters into multi-purpose structures. The pilot is being built at the Baradal Aftab Uddin collegiate school in Baradal union, Assasuni sub-district, Satkhira district. A second pilot location has been selected at Satbaria high school in Satbaria union, Keshabpur sub-district, Jashore district.
The State Department updated its travel advisory for the South Asian country last week, which it has classified under its second-highest Level 3 warning. The advisory warns against potential kidnappings, violent protests, and other crime like muggings, burglaries, and assaults. However, the department noted there was "no evidence that foreigners are targeted because of their nationality."
A solitary figure stands on the shore of Thailand's Tang Khen Bay. The tide is slowly rising over the expanse of sandy beach, but the man does not seem to notice. His eyes are not fixed on the sea, but on the small screen clutched between his hands. About 600 metres offshore, past the shadowy fringe of coral reef, his drone hovers over the murky sea, focused on a whirling grey shape: Miracle, the local dugong, is back.
Raw sewage and solid waste flow into the bay from surrounding cities, home to more than 8 million people. Cargo ships and oil platforms chug in and out of commercial ports, while dozens of abandoned vessels lie rotting in the water. But at the head of the bay, between the cities of Itaborai and Mage, the environment feels different. The air is purer, the waters are empty but for small fishing canoes, and flocks of birds soar overhead.
Every evening around 8pm, Faisal Khan locks himself inside his small hostel room at East West Medical College in Nishat Nagar, on the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh. If there is a knock on the door, he pauses before opening it, listening carefully first for familiar voices. Outside the campus, he avoids crowded tea stalls and markets. He does not speak Bangla fluently, and he knows that his accent could give him away as an Indian an identity he desperately wants to mask these days,
Cricket authorities in Bangladesh have agreed to work closely with the International Cricket Council (ICC) to resolve security concerns regarding their team's participation in the upcoming T20 World Cup in India. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) will cooperate with the tournament's organisers in order to ensure the country's participation, it said in a statement on Wednesday, three days after saying its men's team will not travel to the neighbouring country.
On a Thursday afternoon, 19-year-old Mahmudul Hasan prepared seating on the floor of his bamboo-and-tarpaulin home in Balukhali Rohingya Refugee camp. Minutes later, 35 young children trooped in. Hasan is still in his teens, but he is their teacher. They greeted him in Rakhine language: Sayar, Nay Kaung Lar? [Sir, how are you?] The children are among 80 who study at Hasan's community-run private school, where he teaches them Burmese, English and maths.
Voters across Bangladesh have participated in parliamentary elections, marking a pivotal moment for the nation's democracy following a period of significant political upheaval and violence. After a gradual start, polling stations in the capital, Dhaka, and throughout the country filled with voters by mid-morning. Voting will conclude later on Thursday with results anticipated on Friday. More than 127 million eligible voters are participating in Bangladesh's first election since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government fell in 2024.
