PM calls to modernise education to meet AI-era challenges

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has called for an urgent overhaul of Bangladesh's education system, saying it must become skills-based, technology-driven, and aligned with the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

He said a curriculum modernised for artificial intelligence and automation is essential for the nation's future competitiveness, and warned that a certificate-centric approach is no longer enough.

He made these remarks while inaugurating a teacher training programme at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka.

National University is currently training 12,000 teachers to deliver undergraduate-level ICT courses across its affiliated colleges.

The inauguration ceremony was chaired by National University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr ASM Amanullah.

Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Haque Milan and Prime Minister's Adviser Mahdi Amin spoke as special guests. National University Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Md Lutfar Rahman delivered the welcome speech, while Education Secretary Abdul Khaleque spoke as the guest of honour.

The programme, titled "Incorporating skills-based education into National University curriculum", was held under the theme "We will receive job-oriented education and work across the world".

He said over fifteen years of authoritarian rule and exploitation had eroded democratic rights and the integrity of the education system, and that it is now time for Bangladesh to chart a new course.

He underscored the need to include artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, programming, digital entrepreneurship, quantum computing, nanotechnology, and 5G technology in the national curriculum to keep pace with rapid technological change.

He added that the government has initiated reforms to make the curriculum technology-based and practical from primary to tertiary education.

The Prime Minister said effective measures are underway to expand apprenticeships, internships, and industry collaboration to tackle graduate unemployment.

He said arrangements have also been made to provide "seed funding" or "innovation grants" to help young people become entrepreneurs from college and university campuses.

The Prime Minister said young people would not face a shortage of jobs if they learn a third language alongside English.

He highlighted National University's role in implementing government initiatives and stressed the integration of ethics, mental health, social inclusion, and environmental protection into skills-based, job-oriented education.

Describing national development as a collective endeavour, the Prime Minister called for collaboration among universities, teachers, students, guardians, civil society, and the private sector to build a knowledge- and merit-based society.

Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Haque Milan said National University has taken various initiatives, including syllabus reform, to ensure timely and job-oriented education and expand employment opportunities in the current competitive market.

He said the initiatives are aligned with the present government's education vision.

Prime Minister's Adviser Mahdi Amin said former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia established the National University to expand higher education opportunities for people from marginalised communities and all classes and professions across the country.

As a result, he said, lakhs of students are now receiving higher education, improving their quality of life, and contributing actively to the national economy and state-building.

Presenting the keynote paper, National University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr ASM Amanullah said the university has undertaken programmes to make higher education more skills-based and technology-driven and help ensure employment for its nearly 40 lakh students.

He said the initiatives would support the government's priorities in youth development, skills development, job creation, technology expansion, and higher education reform. In the backdrop of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, artificial intelligence, the digital economy and changing global job demands, National University has made ICT courses mandatory at the undergraduate level.

The ICT curriculum has been prepared and is being implemented with support from the government's a2i project and UNICEF's Generation Unlimited.

The Vice-ChaThe Vice-Chancellor said National University has established the Multi-Language Learning Institute to give students opportunities to learn a third language. As part of the government's greening programme, the university has launched the "One Student, One Tree" project to plant 2 crore trees over the next 5 years.

He said that if National University's reform programmes are implemented properly, they will soon bring major changes in Bangladesh.

The event opened with the national anthem, followed by a minute's silence in honour of the martyrs of the Liberation War and the July movement.

A documentary, "Liberation to Leadership", was screened, spotlighting the perspectives of late president Ziaur Rahman, former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia, and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, as well as the contributions of Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda Zia during pivotal moments in Bangladesh's history.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was presented with a crest and a sapling at the programme.

BNP Secretary General and LGRD Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, cabinet members, members of parliament, secretaries, vice-chancellors of different universities, foreign diplomats, UNICEF representatives, civil society representatives, and editors of print and electronic media attended the inauguration ceremony.

National University Treasurer Professor Dr ATM Zafrul Azam, Registrar Molla Mahfuz Al-Hossain, teachers and officials, principals and teachers of National University-affiliated colleges, and students were also present.

Around 1,000 National University-affiliated colleges and nearly six lakh students from across the country joined the programme virtually.