Our infrastructure is ready for the new frontier. Are the people ready?

Bangladesh has experienced spectacular economic growth over the last decade. Robust ready-made garment (RMG) exports, remittance and stable macroeconomic conditions have all contributed to this rapid growth, making it one of the countries with the highest growth rates in the world. After the Covid-19 pandemic, the nation has made a strong economic rebound.

Recently, Bangladesh opened the Padma Bridge, the largest infrastructure project in the country, which is expected to contribute to the socio-economic growth of millions. Moreover, the Bangladesh government has set a massive goal of establishing 100 new export processing zones (EPZ) in the next 15 years. Currently, the country is building its ninth EPZ. At the same time, the authority has heavily invested in building hi-tech software and IT parks. So plenty of new opportunities are emerging. However, can the Bangladeshi youth take proper advantage of these opportunities?

In a recent interview with The Business Standard, Asif Uddin Ahmed, Professor and Director of MBA Programme, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) talked about the emerging opportunities and whether the Bangladeshi youth are ready to utilise them.

Do we have the manpower and proper education system to utilise the opportunities that will come thanks to megaprojects like Padma bridge? 

There has been a lot of talk about 4IR (Fourth Industrial Revolution). Getting ready for that should be Bangladesh's top priority right now. But as we participate in this global movement, we are presented with a number of problems as well as possibilities that, if managed skillfully, these possibilities have the potential to result in significant change, development, and progress. 

However, against the current backdrop, it seems highly unlikely. There are lots of challenges. Some of the challenges that the country is facing include a shortage of highly skilled manpower and technical know-how. Moreover, our education system is not modern and market-based. 

It has been difficult to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) because of these reasons. It is also highly regrettable that technology transfer is not happening to the predicted degree, from foreign corporations to domestic manpower. 

In Bangladesh, electronics and other manufacturing products are mostly being assembled. In many cases the raw materials of "made in Bangladesh" products are imported. This is not all bad necessarily. Technology and skill will be transferred gradually. However, we do not have skilled labour now. 

Given the new economic possibilities, there will be many manufacturing plants and factories in the country's economic zones and the southern region. But how many of those factory employees will be Bangladeshis, especially in the mid-level management? This remains to be seen. 

How can we address the gap between the supply and demand of skilled labour?

Bangladesh is a unique case of jobless economic growth. Our economy is growing at a fast rate. But in comparison, enough jobs are not being created. This is a huge problem. 

The ageing population of the world is increasing. In our country, the age group of 22-27, who should be in the workforce, accounts for 60 million people. And 90 million are in the age group of 18-35. This is one of the highest numbers of youth in the world. No other country in the world has such a high level of youth.

Professor Asif Uddin Ahmed. Sketch: TBS

In Bangladesh, there are around 6 lakh foreigners who are working as mid-level managers. And they take millions of dollars every year. In the biggest infrastructure projects, you will see that a large number of foreigners are working, the same is true for the Padma Bridge project. The same thing is going to happen in the upcoming projects.

In Bangladesh, unemployment is not very high, a little more than 5%. But in terms of graduate unemployment, it is one of the highest in the world. And a huge number of graduates are entering the market. The number is 18-20 lakhs per year. 

You cannot just replace the 6 lakh expatriates with our university students. I have compared mid-level Bangladeshi managers with expatriates. I have done some research on the issue and it was eye-opening. If we don't take steps now the gap will widen in the future. And we will miss out on a lot of opportunities. And to address this, our mentality and the education system need to be overhauled.

What are Bangladesh's universities doing in this regard? And what should they do? 

I think there is a huge gap in cooperation between universities and business corporations in Bangladesh. Certificate-based education is a big problem here. I have interviewed 106 CEOs and more than 500 managers, both local and foreign. From my experience of teaching MBA students and researching the state of skills development in Bangladesh, I don't think we have the necessary skill set they seek.

This is the fault of the education system, educational institutions and students themselves. Bangladesh has a high number of graduate students. I don't think we need so many graduates. There is a certain tendency among parents to make their son or daughter a graduate. Everyone wants to graduate. 

Moreover, today's generation lacks certain things: critical thinking, curiosity, communication skills etc. And that's why expatriates are filling the gap in the market.

What's your opinion about the state of technical and vocational training in Bangladesh and should we emphasise more on these?

If you see the statistics of donations and foreign investments coming into Bangladesh, donors have spent millions on professional skill development. They have also created valuable vocational training infrastructure. 

But we are undermining diploma engineers. People have higher aspirations nowadays, everyone wants to graduate. Parents also want their children to get into universities. As there are few opportunities at public universities, many are opting for private ones. And the distinction between public and private universities is narrowing. 

Because of the economic situation, many parents can easily afford their child's education at a private university. It costs 10-15 lakh taka. But before investing in education, they are not thinking about the returns. Many of the graduates earn Tk15-20K after spending 15 lakhs.

A stronger relationship between industries and training centres needs to be created to meet the demand for skilled labour by the employers. And overall the education culture needs to be systematically reformed.