‘Bangladesh Journalism Conference’ to be held in Dhaka in May: what to expect

The ‘Bangladesh Journalism Conference 2026’ is set to be held in Dhaka in May. The conference will take place on 8 and 9 May at the Radisson Blu Hotel in the capital. More than 500 participants will take part in the conference, while experts in journalism from 10 countries will attend as speakers.

This information was shared this morning, Thursday, by Hasibur Rahman, executive director of Media Resources Development Initiative (MRDI), at a press conference held at The Daily Star Centre in the capital. MRDI is organising the conference to mark its 25th anniversary.

At the press conference, Hasibur Rahman said the event is aimed at addressing the existing challenges facing independent journalism and setting future directions. Owners, editors, journalists, researchers, development workers, teachers, students and representatives of civil society are being brought onto one platform to take coordinated initiatives to improve the quality of journalism. MRDI believes that in the new democratic context, it is important to highlight the responsible role of the media.

Discussions at the conference will focus on objective investigative reporting, improving standards of public interest journalism, maintaining ethics in the face of technological change, and creating accountability frameworks to overcome the crisis of public trust in the media. Alongside this, inclusive newsrooms—particularly increasing the participation of women—will also be emphasised.

The organisers hope that through this conference, a foundation will be created to present Bangladesh’s journalism on the international stage and elevate it to global standards.

Journalists, editors, researchers, teachers, development workers and representatives of civil society from home and abroad will take part in the conference.

Among the international experts expected to attend are Michael Cooke, former editor of Canada’s Toronto Star; Julian Sher, investigative journalist and filmmaker; Zaffar Abbas, editor of Pakistan’s Dawn; and Kunda Dixit of Nepali Times, among others.

It was stated at the press conference that a total of 12 sessions will be held at the conference, with more than 20 speakers participating. The programme will include plenary sessions, thematic sessions, parallel tracks and master classes.

In addition, there will be four help desks at the venue—on investigative journalism, right to information (RTI), fact-checking and mental health support.

Key discussion topics will include investigative journalism, media self-regulation, accountability and complaint mechanisms, an enabling environment for a free press, digital transformation, the use of data, gender equality and journalists’ safety.

To participate in the conference, registration must be completed through MRDI’s designated website (https://bdjc.mrdibd.org/). Registration will begin after 12:00 am tonight. After registration, selected participants will be given a QR code through a selection process by the organisers, which must be presented for entry to the conference.

Registration will be open under four categories—journalists, MRDI alumni, students and others. However, for students, completion of MRDI’s basic journalism online course is mandatory. Participation opportunities for students will be determined based on the results of this course.

There will also be fellowship opportunities at the conference for 15 journalists from outside Dhaka.

The conference will have the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN), Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) and the Swedish government as knowledge partners. UNESCO and the United Nations ‘Ballot Programme’ will be platinum partners there.