The sheer degree of vulnerability in the country’s overall investment and employment landscape is evident from the intense competition among highly educated youths for 16th to 20th-grade jobs.
Recent reports from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) similarly indicate that unemployment is highest among educated youths. The underlying reason, undoubtedly, is that our higher education institutions are largely failing to produce graduates suited to the labour market.
However, our policymakers consistently overlook a major truth here: given the capacity of Bangladesh’s labour market, it is simply impossible to absorb over 700,000 graduates every year.
In the reality of Bangladesh’s employment scenario, there is no alternative to technical education. This is because out of the 2.2 to 2.3 million youths entering the labour market each year, formal, decent employment is generated for only 300,000 across both the public and private sectors. Furthermore, 800,000 to 900,000 youths are forced to migrate abroad every year—primarily to Middle Eastern countries—in search of work.
The stark reality, however, is that our youths are compelled to settle for low-cost, low-skilled labour both at home and abroad due to a lack of skills. Yet, if these students could be skilled in various vocational trades through technical education, they would not only transform their own fortunes but also breathe new life into the country's economy.
While policymakers in the country are often heard expressing optimism regarding technical education, the reality presents quite the opposite picture. Although the SSC (vocational) curriculum was first introduced in 1995, it has not been possible to establish this education system on a well-coordinated framework even after 31 years.
Owing to the absence of a comprehensive plan, there has merely been an expansion in the number of technical educational institutions. Quality education cannot be imparted due to a critical shortage of qualified and competent teachers, laboratories, and educational tools.
In light of this, it is only natural to question: is vocational education suffering from neglect simply because the children of relatively poor and underprivileged families enrol in it?
A report by Prothom Alo presents a detailed and vivid picture of just how haphazardly the country’s technical education is being run. Between public and private sectors, there are approximately 12,942 technical educational institutions in the country. While the total seat capacity across these institutions stands at around two million, only one million students are currently enrolled.
The same dismal state prevails across public polytechnics, private polytechnics, and the SSC (vocational) stream alike. Data from the Technical Education Board shows that among the 3,440 institutions authorised to run vocational programmes, more than 600 have remained completely devoid of students year after year.
The Technical Education Board states that it will issue notices to these defunct vocational institutions and close them down if they fail to meet the requisite conditions. However, given the deeper malady within the country’s technical education system, this is by no means an effective remedy.
If we are to groom our future generation into a skilled workforce, we must first abandon the mindset of allowing the technical education sector to run haphazardly. Merely increasing the number of educational institutions will not suffice; ensuring quality education is paramount.
We believe that a comprehensive school mapping exercise covering existing educational institutions across the country must be conducted to plan approvals, teacher recruitment, and infrastructure development according to actual demand.