ULAB CES and Dhaka Tribune host ‘National Civil Society Dialog on Reforming University Education in Bangladesh’

The ULAB Center for Enterprise and Society (CES) and the Dhaka Tribune hosted a national civil society dialog titled “Reforming University Education in Bangladesh” on Sunday at Bengal Blueberry Hotel in Gulshan, Dhaka, says a press release.

In light of the recent political upheaval and an interim government of civil society leaders, there is a scope for much-needed reforms whether it is at the level of modernizing curriculum, incorporating skill-based learning to enhance employment generation, or whether it is at the level of making education more inclusive.

The dialog brought together a diverse group of distinguished speakers and attendees from academia, corporates, startups, influencers, NGO, development sector professionals, and human rights activists.

Sajid Amit, Director, CES, ULAB, commenced the event with his opening remarks and moderated the discussion. The discussion included Professor Imran Rahman, Vice Chancellor, ULAB; Farah Kabir, Country Director, ActionAid Bangladesh; Ilira Dewan, Human Rights Activist; Saif Islam, Senior Programme Officer, ILO; Urfi Ahmed, General Manager, VML Bangladesh; Abantee Harun, Assistant Professor, ULAB; Md. Rubaiyath Sarwar, Managing Director, Innovision Consulting; Dr Haseeb Irfanullah, Visiting Research Fellow, ULAB; Minhaz Anwar, Chief Storyteller, BetterStories; Shahir Chowdhury, CEO, Shikho; Tasaffy Hossain, Founder/Coordinator, Bonhishikha; Muntasir Tahmeed, Managing Director, Inspira Advisory and Consulting Ltd; Md Nafeez Al Tarik, CFA, Managing Director, Dhaka Bank Securities Ltd; Breity Sabrin Khan; CEO and Co-founder, The Marvel Be You; Nabila Nawrin, CEO, Moar Space Limited; Upoma Haq, Head of Business Development, International Bank; and Zeeshan Kingshuk Huq, Managing Director, RTS Enterprise.

The discussion yielded brilliant insights on the importance of incorporating personal finance and wealth management into business curricula, as well as local case studies on business ethics; while rendering the curriculum industry-oriented, skills-oriented, and entrepreneurship-friendly. Discussants agreed on the importance of allowing flexibility to universities to design their own curriculum without adhering to the same “templatized” approach across universities; and encouraging more private sector practitioners to teach university courses.

The discussion also focused on rethinking the curriculum and its contents as well as delivery methods to ensure gender equality, representation of minorities, climate resilience and climate justice. It was a widely held-view that although the entire educational spectrum requires a re-think to make institutions more suitable for a modern economy and empower students with skills to find or create jobs, the tertiary or university sector constitutes the final opportunity to address these requirements.