Dhaka, Feb. 9 -- In barely a week, a newly elected government will assume office in a transformed Bangladesh -- burdened by intense public expectation and an economy on the edge. While challenges loom across political, social and diplomatic fronts, the most urgent test will be restarting a stalled economic engine.

As the country reaches the final stage of democratic transition after the student-led Uprising that ended Sheikh Hasina's rule, a single question dominates debate: can the next government navigate an economy weakened by years of policy failures and institutional decay?

The interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus spoke frequently of reform. Beyond preventing further collapse, however, little structural progress was made. ...