United News of Bangladesh

BNP senior leader Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan on Thursday alleged that the country’s education system has been deliberately destroyed by the past autocratic government of Sheikh Hasina to continue her misrule and suppress people. “They (AL govt) feared that if people become educated, they would raise their voice against injustice. Over the last 17 years, they have destroyed the entire education system of the country,” he told a seminar. Dhaka University teachers of the white panel, a pro-BNP teachers' association, organised the event tiled 'President Ziaur Rahman's Educational Philosophy and programmes at the Nawab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Building, marking the marking the 44th martyrdom anniversary of BNP founder and former President Ziaur Rahman. Dr Moyeen, a BNP Standing Committee Member, said although many rural schools were nationalised, teachers and students are no longer attending classes. “It is not their fault. The government itself wanted to keep the nation in darkness,” he said. Praising former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s role in education, he said, “Begum Zia introduced stipends for students, which benefited the nation greatly.” Referring to the criticism that BNP was founded in the cantonment, Moyeen Khan said, Ziaur Rahman, a soldier, did more for education than any other civilian leaders. “The fact is, Ziaur Rahman took many initiatives to ensure quality education for the people. On the other hand, those who (AL) claim to be a party of the people tried to keep the nation uneducated in a planned way. Why?” he said. BNP forms committee to observe August-5 anniversary The BNP leader said Zia's various initiatives proved his deep love for education, mentioning his sea voyage with meritorious students under the Hizbul Bahar programme as a symbol of his educational vision. Realizing that one can be at the top of the world only through education, initiation, and advancement in knowledge and science, the BNP leader said Ziaur Rahman emphasized the development of the education system. He also said the educational philosophy and programmes of Ziaur Rahman could be the subject of a PhD research. Speaking on the Iran-Israel issue, Moyeen Khan said America is not powerful because of weapons, but because of knowledge. “If a list of the top 100 universities in the world is made, around 70 to 80 of them are American.” He said Zia believed in development through productivity. “He was the first to think about nuclear power in Bangladesh. He always promoted practical and realistic education. His contributions are countless.”  In just three and a half years, Moyeen said Zia took effective steps for the country. “There is hardly any sector in national life where he did not leave his mark.” BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, who attended the seminar as special guest, said, “Ziaur Rahman introduced a people-oriented education system to make the nation self-reliant. “His policies were visionary, unlike Sheikh Hasina’s fascist approach.” Rizvi also said Zia strengthened every sector, including economy, education and foreign policy, establishing a disciplined foundation for the nation. Professor Dr Mohammad Siddiqur Rahman Khan, Dean of Dhaka University’s Faculty of Arts, presented the keynote paper. BNP disapproves NCC formation, says Salahuddin  He described Ziaur Rahman as a realistic and future-oriented leader who laid the foundation of modern Bangladesh. He said Zia didn’t write a detailed philosophy of education, but his speeches, policies, and programmes reflected a clear vision. “He promoted science, technology, and technical education, as well as moral values aligned with Islamic principles.” BNP Vice Chairman Shamsuzzaman Dudu, BNP Media Cell Convener Dr Moudud Hossain Alamgir Pavel, and White Panel Joint Convenor Professor Dr Md Abdus Salam, among others, spoke at the seminar presided over by Professor Dr Morshed Hasan Khan, convenor of the DU White Panel. The programme was also attended by over 500 teachers and officials from various universities, including vice chancellors, pro-VCs, deans and provosts.

Highlighting the importance of education system's reform, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday said the country's education system must foster creativity to create a generation of entrepreneurs in the country. "We should reform the education system in a way that it creates a generation of entrepreneurs. We need education, which helps students become creative people. Our young people must fulfil their creative potentials," the Chief Adviser said when he visited the Education Ministry at the Secretariat. He said humans are born entrepreneurs. "Yet, our education system creates job seekers. It is a flawed education system." The Chief Adviser chaired his first Cabinet meeting at the Secretariat and later visited the Education Ministry. Prof Yunus said Bangladesh should not create an education system that emphasises only test scores. "The perception that test score is everything must go," he said. The Chief Adviser also called for narrowing generational gaps in Bangladeshi society, saying the country must understand the language of the new generation—their aspirations and their thought process. "We must understand the language and the thought process of the youth. We need to know how the older generation can share their experience with the younger generation," he said. "The distance between young and old generations gets bigger; it will create troubles. We must minimise the idea gaps between generations," the chief adviser said.," the chief adviser said. He also stressed the need for fostering family values in our national curricula. Education Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud and Education Secretary Siddiq Jobaer were present during the Chief Adviser's meeting with senior education ministry officials.    

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday asked UNESCO to declare remote learning and online education as a global public good as these are creating a new divide. “I also call upon UNESCO to work as a matter of priority with Governments, private sectors and other stakeholders to rally partnership and resources to make this happen,” she said while delivering her speech at the 41st General Conference of UNESCO held at its Headquarters here. The Prime Minister said the pandemic has undermined the hard-earned achievements while it has revealed a major fault line in the education system. According to UNESCO, close to half of the world's students are affected by partial or full school closures, she said. “Online education evolved as a “new normal” during the pandemic. Yet, it also exposed a new divide,” she added. In this connection, Sheikh Hasina said the advanced countries could swiftly move to online platforms. But the developing countries and LDCs were pushed further behind due to lack of resources and technologies. “This has jeopardized our decades of gains in school enrollment, literacy rate and learning of youth and adults,” she observed. While digitisation has enhanced better services and free flow of information, all are worried by the misuse of digital tools and platforms for spreading harmful contents and hate speech, she said. “This has a significant negative impact on the peace and stability of the society. World bodies like UNESCO should work for addressing this issue,” said the PM. Read: Hasina invites French entrepreneurs to invest in Bangladesh Talking about climate change, she said this is a life-threatening reality not only for Bangladesh but also for many other countries of the world.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam has said it is time to allow young generation dream big and address any skill gaps in their career path through training in communication, cooperation and leadership. Support and cooperation from all the stakeholders including private sectors, NGOs, development partners in the forms of knowledge, skills and technology as well as investment are needed in the employment generation and skill development of youth to utilise their full potential, he said. Read:Ambassador Muhith takes over chairmanship of Asia-Pacific Group in Vienna The State Minister made the remarks while addressing a policy dialogue virtually titled “Skill Development of Youth for Better Employment Opportunity” as the chief guest. Syeda Saima Ahmed, Councillor, Ilford Town, London Borough of Redbridge and Tasmiah Rahman, Head of Strategy & Business Development, BRAC took part as the panelists at the event held on Saturday evening. The dialogue was chaired by Tasnuva Ahmed, President, JCI Dhaka Independent and moderated by its Director Mahfuz Mishu. Junior Chamber International, commonly referred to as JCI, is a non-profit international non-governmental organization of young people aged 18 to 40 years who are engaged and committed to creating impact in their communities. The State Minister said the government of Bangladesh has already taken numerous initiatives to ensure maximum utilisation of youth potential through promoting their empowerment, morality, humanity and commitment to uphold the responsibilities and glory of Bangladesh. He said there are certain challenges that they need to address together. "We need to ensure full employment and decent work for all men and women including the youths by 2030," said the State Minister. He said global standard education and skill development are twin key factors to this endeavour. Read:EU delegation launches Climate Adaptation Campaign

The European Union (EU) has provided EUR 42 million or Tk 423 crore to the government of Bangladesh to support key national reforms in the education sector.  With this grant, the EU recognises and supports the government’s commitment to the development of human capital, the eradication of poverty and inequalities, along with its commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, said the EU Embassy in Dhaka.  This is the second disbursement under the EU sector budget support ‘Human Capital Development Programme 2021’, which focuses on strengthening the education and skills sector of Bangladesh with specific focus on primary, as well as technical and vocational education and training.  Also read: EU launches TEI GET in Bangladesh to invest in renewable energy In line with the National Education Policy and National Skills Development Policy, the EU support aims to contribute to government of Bangladesh’s own reform agenda and institutional capacity towards a comprehensive education and skills development approach.  "Education is fundamental for the economic growth of a country and remains at the core of the EU's development cooperation. Reaping the maximum benefit of Bangladesh’s demographic dividend will largely depend on an inclusive and equitable quality Primary Education and Technical and Vocational Education system designed to cater to the future job market and employment generation,” said EU Ambassador Rensje Teerink. She said the EU is, however, concerned about the continued school closure as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.  "Once the pandemic situation allows it and when effective precautionary measures can be taken, the reopening of schools must proceed as soon as possible, in particular because access to alternative distant schooling solutions remains a challenge for a large number of students, especially the marginalized ones,” she added.  Also read: Germany to provide EUR 339.54 to Bangladesh under two deals The support programme to education reforms intends to provide a total of EUR 217 million as budget support linked to jointly-agreed performance indicators.  The programme addresses core elements of system strengthening and policy development.  Technical assistance is also available to support the cluster of institutions responsible to coordinate and deliver education reforms. The disbursement of this second payment comes after a positive decision of the Budget Support Steering Committee of the European Commission's Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development in May 2021.

The world is facing an unprecedented crisis with the Covid-19 pandemic. Day after day all the failures in our economic and social system and thinking process are being revealed.

The Covid pandemic has caused the largest disruption of the education system in history, affecting almost 80% of the students across 150 countries, experts have said, calling for better digital infrastructure for the seamless success of e-learning initiatives in emerging economies like Bangladesh.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition in Parliament GM Quader on Thursday urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take steps for nationalising the entire education system, including the secondary and higher secondary ones, on the birth centenary of Bangabandhu.

Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader on Tuesday feared that the auto-promotion in the education system can make the future of students uncertain.

Speakers at a discussion in the capital on Saturday opposed the government’s decision of giving students auto-promotion without holding HSC and other examinations, saying it is part of a ploy to destroy the country’s education system and the nation.