Prioritise technical edu for development, experts tell roundtable

Technical and skill-based education should be given more priority for the country’s development as this will meet the demand of markets at home and abroad, experts told a roundtable on Wednesday.

They also said sector-wise approach (SWAp) should be taken to improve the state of the country’s technical education.

Prothom Alo, in association with International Labor Organization (ILO) organised the roundtable on ‘Coordinated and Effective Steps between Donor Agencies and Development Partners for the Development of Technical Education and Skill’ at CA Bhaban in the city’s Karwan Bazar area.

A coordinated effort between the government and the development partners is needed for the sector’s improvement, the experts said. 

More than one speaker said it is important to create skilled persons instead of jobless graduates.

Technical and Madrasah Education Division secretary of the education ministry, Md Alamgir, said the technical education has been given utmost priority by the government and the number of students in the field has increased in recent years.

“The government in its election manifesto has categorically said that it will set up technical schools and colleges in every upazila,” he said.

Mentioning different government initiatives for technical education, Alamgir said the government is planning to introduce technical subject in class VI to class VIII in general education (school and marasa) from 2021. The decision is likely to be finalised at a meeting on 27 May.

Moreover, a plan to make a technical subject compulsory for each 9th and 10th grade student is underway.

Also, technical education will be introduced in 640 secondary schools and madrasa in 2020, he added.

International Labour Organization’s (ILO) country director Tuomo Poutiainen said it is important to find out the requirements of the job market and forecast about it.

Stressing on the labour market data and analysis, he said, “Voices from the labours and employers are extremely important in the process.”

Former additional secretary of education ministry and UNICEF advisor Chowdhury Mufad Ahmed said while development partners are keen on skill development, there is a lack of coordination among them.

He also said student’s enrollment in technical schools, especially of girls has increased recently.Senior economist of World Bank Syed Rashed Al-Zayed said that increasing the public sector investment is important for the technical education’s development.

He also said that the government, not the development partners, should be in the driving seat for development of the sector.

Global Affairs Canda’s senior development advisor Riful Jannat echoed the same voice and said, the development partners can provide technical assistance but it is the government who should determine what needs to be done in the sector.

European Union’s education and human development team leader Dorte Bosse stressed on solid analysis of labour market.

“Two million young people enter labour market each year. But only 200,000 are given a chance to enter the formal labor market. What happens to other 1.8 million?” she voiced concern.

Bangladesh Employers Association’s (BEF) president Kamran T Rahman said, “Skilled labours of Bangladesh are not recognized in international markets as we have no mutual recognition of certification of skills.”

Referring to skill gap of Bangladesh’s labour in international labour market, he said, 11 million Bangladeshi labours are sending $15 billion remittance every year while 17 million Indians are sending $70 billion.

National Coordination Summit on Workers Education’s (NCSWE) chairperson Shah Abu Zafar said the technical education sector is beset with various problems such as inadequate infrastructure, low equality of education and lack of government supervision.

He also suggested for democratically elected governing body in technical schools to improve the condition of these institutions.

Former line director of Primary Health Care of the health and family planning ministry Jakir Hossain, Directorate of Technical Education’s director Jahangir Alam and Zhigang Li of Asian Development Bank also spoke at the roundtable moderated by Prothom Alo associate editor Abdul Quayum.