Muhammad Yunus currently heads the interim government in Bangladesh as Chief Advisor. This interim government will run the country until a new election is held. Yunus has launched commissions to supervise reforms he says are needed before an election can be held. Such reforms include an updated voter list without false names and more first-time voters registered. There is consistent pressure to hold elections, but many difficulties are related to political parties failing to find common ground for change. Thus, an election is not predicted to happen until 2026. The Yunus Interim Government is composed of various advisors and was formed in August 2024 after the previous Council of Ministers was ousted. The members of Yunus’s cabinet are advisors, not ministers. Everyone in the cabinet has taken oaths to uphold the caretaker government and seek to restore peace and prepare for new elections. In committee, delegates will debate reforms, manage crises, and respond as the political environment shifts. 

Bangladesh has experienced a dramatic, popularly lauded regime change. The interim government has swept in with high expectations. Now that the dust has settled, it is time to deliver on those expectations. The previous regime, led by Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League, had been in control of Bangladesh since 2009. Her authoritarian rule led to significant democratic backsliding and widespread police brutality against citizens who protested her leadership. However, Hasina and her cabinet were forced to resign following popular student-led protests in the summer of 2024. The military and president immediately announced an interim government. This would be led by Mohammad Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning economist. The interim government has to contend with a litany of issues, including rising crime rates, alleged Indian attempts to destabilize the country, a lack of freedom of speech, and a refugee crisis. All of this must be addressed while simultaneously planning the framework for Bangladesh’s next elections, slated to be held in the near future. Further complicating matters is Hasina’s trial for crimes against humanity, which could exacerbate tensions in an already unstable country. As members of Bangladesh’s interim government, delegates will be tasked with securing Bangladesh’s young democracy and protecting human rights while charting a path for the country’s future.