Govt identifies 43 areas in education to increase allocation, PM Tarique tells parliament

The government has identified 43 areas to increase allocation in the education sector and raise it to 5 percent of GDP, and is implementing short, medium, and long-term plans, says Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

He made the remarks on Wednesday morning during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) in parliament in response to a written question from Sirajganj-1 constituency MP Selim Reza.

He said, “The current democratic government considers education the best investment for the nation and is committed to building a quality, life-oriented, and inclusive education system. In the election manifesto, the government has outlined a plan to gradually increase education sector allocation to 5 percent of GDP.”

“In line with that, 43 areas in the education sector have been identified, and short, medium, and long-term plans are being implemented. The manifesto places special emphasis on improving the quality of primary education. To that end, in the current fiscal year, free school uniforms will be distributed among 200,000 students in government primary schools. There is also a plan to gradually expand this to all Upazilas. To meet the nutritional needs of primary students, a school feeding/midday meal programme will be implemented in phases across all Upazilas.”

Due to a microphone malfunction, the parliamentary session began at 11am, half an hour late, led by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad. The first 30 minutes of the session were allocated to PMQs. The speaker informed that both the prime minister’s and ministers’ Q&A sessions were presented on the table on Wednesday.

In response to Reza’s question, the prime minister outlined the government’s plans, stating: “According to the election manifesto, to make the new generation globally competitive, multimedia classrooms will be established in all primary and secondary schools and equivalent institutions. To reduce the digital divide, free Wi-Fi connectivity will be provided to 1,500 institutions (secondary schools, colleges, and universities), and a unique digital identity or ‘Edu-ID’ will be introduced for each student and teacher. The manifesto also includes a commitment to making technical education compulsory alongside general education at the secondary level.”

“There are plans to gradually establish technical schools and colleges in all Upazilas and polytechnic institutes in every district. Along with modernising technical and madrasa education institutions, free Wi-Fi will be introduced in 2,336 technical institutions and 8,232 madrasa institutions within the next 180 days. To modernise madrasa education and make it relevant to the current times, smart classrooms will be set up, teachers will receive skill development training, and technical courses will be included.”

Under the ICT Division, the Bangladesh Computer Council will, within the next six months, provide training to students in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, mobile app development and design using Flutter, Python programming, and AI-based digital marketing, he said

Four questions were scheduled for the prime minister. The first question, asked by MP Reza, was whether the government has any plans to prioritise education, provide quality education to the new generation, and equip them with higher education, information technology, and skills aligned with the competitive global environment.

‘Family, Not the Individual, is the Core Unit’

The prime minister said that the “Family Cards” programme is being implemented based on the principle that the family, not the individual, is the core unit of development.

In response to a written question from Noakhali-1 MP AM Mahbub Uddin, he said: “To ensure the social security rights of citizens, the government has adopted the ‘family as the core unit of development’ philosophy and introduced the Family Card programme. In the initial phase, on Mar 10, Family Cards were distributed to 37,814 families across 13 districts and three city corporations.”

“In the future, around 40 million marginal families across the country will gradually be brought under this programme. We hope that poor women in the constituencies of members of parliament will be included under the Family Cards programme in the shortest possible time.”

Development of the Tourism Industry

In response to a question from Dhaka-19 MP Dewan Mohammad Salah Uddin, the prime minister said that the government’s election manifesto includes five commitments related to tourism. These are: ensuring tourist safety and developing tourism-friendly policies, training and development of tour guides, promotion of culinary tourism, development of community, ethnic, and water tourism, and expansion of eco-tourism and rural tourism.

“To implement these commitments in line with the country’s socio-economic conditions and the growing demand of domestic and international tourists, specific short, medium, and long-term action plans are being adopted. A draft of the National Tourism Master Plan has already been prepared.”

“Currently, more than 30 districts in the country have recognised and attractive tourist destinations. To expand tourism facilities across all regions and ensure balanced development, initiatives have been taken to create tourism facilities based on local heritage and culture in each district.”