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Published : 19 Dec 2024, 05:19 PM
The D-8 governments can convene candid, result-oriented conversations involving youth communities on startups, business and finance to carve out new platforms amongst them and Bangladesh is ready to take such initiatives forward, says Muhammad Yunus, chief advisor to the interim government.
Bangladesh is ready to convene the first multi-stakeholders meeting in 2025, the chief advisor said as he addressed the 11th Summit of the D-8 Countries in Egypt’s Cairo on Thursday.
The D-8 members met at a time when the world was witnessing unprecedented challenges, Yunus said.
“Yet, so many opportunities beckon us as well.”
He said the theme of the summit, focusing on youth and the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), aptly resonated with shared aspirations. He also congratulated President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi of the Arab Republic of Egypt on his election.
Youth today are quickly embracing technology and innovation in everything, he said.
Often, they show uncanny imagination in tacking intractable climatic stress on-the-field, the chief advisor said.
He noted that agriculture and food were changing, economies were secured and wealth was created within societies with little outside inputs.
“I see how amazingly capable and competitive the SMEs are,” he said. “In the D-8 countries, collectively we possess enough wealth, even in private philanthropy, to stand by these scores of SMEs. With our modest support, we can shape a virtuous ‘cycle of good’, for them and our people. We need to let money flow to them, through de-risking finance, for instance.”
The D-8 countries have to re-invent ‘learning’ to make room for their boys and girls to become leaders of the economy, Yunus said.
The countries had great heritage, wisdom and accomplishments which could be blended and built using that foundation, he noted.
“We are yet to take fuller advantage of the digital revolution that has been with us for years. Now that AI is here, let us think if we can leapfrog and catch up with the disruptions, to the advantage of our entrepreneurial boys and girls,” Yunus said.
As a way forward, the chief advisor proposed two specific courses of action
Firstly, to build and deepen functional, impact-driven connections between the D-8 countries’ universities and equivalent knowledge institutions, particularly focused on preparing boys and girls for an entrepreneurial purpose other than its own sake.
“Our aim should be to generate knowledge output that can produce global secure business and industry from leaders of D8 countries in the fiercely competitive global marketplace, with our niche. If this asks to re-look at the D-8 trade and investment frameworks afresh, we should do so,” the chief advisor said.
Secondly, to think of a cooperative learning agenda that can complement the national undertakings now that basic AI-based tools and applications are accessible, he said.
For years, the D-8 countries tried to impart basic education and skills to millions in their countries through conventional in-person institutional architecture, which was often an increasingly daunting task.
“To reach ‘scale’, we tried through distance learning, for instance. We need to think deeper as to how to skill millions of young adults in a workplace where right attitudes – values – ethics matter as much as hard skills. And, then we also confront the challenge to re-skill many millions at different vocational streams, on a continuous basis,” the chief advisor said.
