Shah A M S Kibria

Kibria served in Pakistan diplomatic missions in Calcutta, Cairo, UN mission, New York, Tehran and Jakarta. He was also appointed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad and the Pakistan Embassy in Washington D.C. During the liberation war Kibria was serving as political counselor in the Pakistan Embassy, Washington DC. On 4 August 1971, he along with his Bengali colleagues, quit the Pakistan embassy and declared allegiance to the interim Bangladesh government. He took part in organizing a Bangladesh mission in Washington DC, and mobilizing public opinion in support of Bangladesh. He also issued a bulletin to inform the international community about the progress of Bangladeshi forces in the war.

After the war Kibria joined the newly established Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh in Dhaka as Director general of the political affairs department.[7] He also held the post of foreign secretary in the Ministry of Administration. In January 1973, he was appointed High commissioner to Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. He was appointed the Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the European office of the UN in Geneva in 1976. He returned to Bangladesh as Foreign Secretary in 1978. During this time, he authored the concept paper for SAARC and helped drive it to fruition. In 1979, Kibria served as the elected Chairman of the Group of 77 Preparatory Committee for United Nations Conference on Trade and Development V held in Manila. From May 1981 to March 1992, Kibria held the post of Executive Secretary of UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). He also assumed the additional assignment of special representative of the UN Secretary-General for Cambodian humanitarian relief in 1986.[3]

After the UN assignments, Kibria returned to Bangladesh in 1992. He started to take in interest in politics and joined Bangladesh Awami League in September as a member of the advisory council.[8] At the same time he started writing columns on economic and political issues in the national dailies. In 1994, he was appointed Political Advisor to the Awami League President. After the general election on 12 June 1996, Kibria joined the cabinet of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as Minister of Finance. He served in this capacity until the government's term expired in July 2001.

Kibria was elected Chairman of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 1997 annual session. He was also elected President of the Governing Council of International Fund for Agricultural Development 1998.

In the general election on 1 October 2001, Kibria was elected a member of parliament from Habiganj-3 constituency.

Kibria's five-year term was marked by economic progress and stability, the only exception being a stock market failure in 1996.[9] During his term (1996–2001) Bangladesh achieved, for the first time, a GDP growth at average rate of 5.83%. Average rate of inflation was well below 5%. The inflation rate in June 2001 was only 1.53%. Exports rose from $3884m in 1995–96 to $6477m in 2000–2001. Investment in the social sector, (education, health etc.) increased from 21.02% of the total budget in 1995–96 to 24.7% in 2000–2001. The rate of national savings increased over the five-year period of the Awami League from 20.17 to 23.78 percent. Similarly, rate of investment increased from 19.99% in 1995–96 to 23.63% in 2000–2001. The physical infrastructure was improved and modernized. Electricity generating capacity rose from 2105 megawatts to 3600 megawatts. Rice and wheat production in 1995–96 was 190.6 m metric tons. In 2000–2001 the figure rose to 264.91 tons and for the first time in half a century, Bangladesh achieved food self- sufficiency.

Expectation of life at birth rose from 58.7 years in 1995–96 to 61.8 years in 2000–2001. Per capita calorie intake went up from 2206.1 to 2274.2 kilocalories in rural areas and from 2220.2 to 2283.3 kilocalories in urban areas during his term as finance minister. Literacy rate for 15 old and above was 47.3 percent in 1995–96; the rate went up to 64 percent in 2000. Infant mortality rate, which was 67 per thousand in 1995–96, went down in 1998 to 57 per thousand live births.