This report covers Reform Watch's monitoring of the July National Charter 2025 from February to July 2026. Developed by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS), Reform Watch tracks progress on the democratic reform commitments contained in the Charter. The report draws on five monthly updates published between February and June 2026, together with developments recorded through the end of July. Its sources include parliamentary proceedings, cabinet decisions, court records, government documents, newspaper reports, statements by political parties, and civil society responses.

The monitoring period began after the new Parliament was sworn in and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's cabinet took office on 17 February 2026. In the 13th National Parliamentary Election, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party won 209 seats and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami became the second-largest party with 68 seats. A referendum held alongside the election endorsed the July National Charter, with about 68.6 per cent of voters supporting its reform agenda. The government therefore entered office with a parliamentary majority, while the Charter carried a separate referendum mandate.

The July National Charter emerged from several months of negotiations led by the National Consensus Commission and involving 33 political parties and alliances. Its 84 provisions cover constitutional reform, electoral reform, the legislature, the judiciary, public administration, police reform, anti-corruption reform, and local government institutions. For monitoring purposes, Reform Watch divides these commitments into 114 provisions and sub-provisions. The five status indicators measure both formal action and the extent to which that action follows the Charter's intended process and objectives.

The referendum did not resolve how the Charter would be implemented. Debate soon shifted to questions of legal procedure, constitutional compatibility, sequencing, and institutional authority. The BNP-led government has argued that reforms should proceed through Parliament and the existing constitutional amendment process, including a special parliamentary committee. Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party have instead called for a Constitutional Reform Council, arguing that an ordinary parliamentary committee would not fulfil the referendum mandate. The disagreement remained unresolved throughout the reporting period. The opposition declined to join the proposed committee, organised public programmes, and submitted memoranda to the Speaker.

The report examines these developments provision by provision, identifies the main political, legal, and institutional factors affecting implementation, and assesses the position of the reform agenda at the midpoint of the monitoring year. The final report, due in January 2027, will review developments during the second half of the period and revise the assessments where necessary.