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Published : 14 Nov 2025, 08:52 PM
Independent University Bangladesh (IUB) has opened its two-day International Conference on Economics, Business and Technology Management (ICEBTM) 2025 at The Westin Dhaka.
The university said in a media statement on Friday that over 300 participants from more than 12 countries, including the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, India, Poland, Thailand, and the UAE, are attending the event.
It added that the event is organised by the School of Business and Entrepreneurship (SBE) to foster knowledge exchange and industry-academia collaboration.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman of the Power and Participation Research Centre and chairman of BRAC, inaugurated the conference as chief guest, as per the statement.
He was joined by IUB Board of Trustees Chairman Didar A Husain, Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr M Tamim, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Daniel W Lund, Acting Dean of SBE Prof Dr Raisul Awal Mahmood, and Conference General Chair Prof Dr Md Mamun Habib.
Syed Nasim Manzur, managing director of Apex Footwear Limited, attended as guest of honor.
Zillur said, “Exchange of knowledge is central to building what we call a common and shared understanding. The challenges being faced by Bangladesh are not unique. They are being faced across the world – across the global south and also the developed world.
“There are commonalities, there are differences, and hopefully, this conference will come to grips with many of these specific challenges that should concentrate in the minds of those present here.”
Didar said, “Vietnam and China are introducing artificial intelligence [AI] at the school level. They are ready for the 5th Industrial Revolution and we are only trying to graduate from the 3rd. So, there is a long way to go.”
Prof Tamim said, “We have 70 student papers in this conference, which is a great encouragement for us. We have representatives from more than 12 countries who have come here with ideas and will share their research topics and industry experience.
“That is a great exposure for our students. We are hosting this conference for our students, so that through them, IUB can contribute to the advancement of this country and also the world of course,” he added.
Prof Daniel Lund said, “Events like this are fabulous. Those who have been academics for many years and have attended many conferences may have met someone 10, 15, even 20 years ago who is still a friend or colleague, or someone you ended up helping get a job, got a job with, or are now working with.
“Therefore, I would encourage all, especially the students, to meet people.”
Prof Mamun mentioned in a statement that the idea for ICEBTM – the International Conference on Economics, Business and Technology Management – was first proposed in February 2020, with plans to hold it in January 2021.
“Because of the pandemic and other challenges, we had to reschedule it multiple times,” he added. “The theme, ‘Sustainability Focused Industry Trends in Global Research’, was brainstormed and finalised during that period.
“And now, after five years and nine months, we are finally here. Thanks to Almighty Allah!”
Raisul Awal said, “Our expectation from the conference is that the participation, discussion and sharing of experience will continue among us even after we return to our respective workplaces.”
“Events such as this are critical for Bangladesh’s manufacturing sector,” said Syed Nasim. “As we transition from a manufacturing system that is based purely on arbitrage of labour to manufacturing based on sustainability and core values, these kinds of industry-academia connections are critical for our future success.
“Bangladesh is privileged to have some of the youngest people in our workforce, but creating the kind of quality jobs that are needed for these people is the challenge for modern industry in Bangladesh.”
Keynote papers have been presented by Zillur; Prof Jonathan Liu of Manchester Business School, UK; and Prof Maniam Kaliannan of the University of Nottingham Malaysia.
Sessions have been chaired by Prof Dr M Tamim; Prof Dr Farid A Sobhani, vice-chancellor of Eastern University; and Dr Derek Westfall of Oregon State University, USA.
Industry leaders joined academic leaders in panel discussions titled “Industry Talk” and “Academia-Industry Discussion”, the statement noted.
The university said the panels included Ferdous Saleheen of Sharjah Maritime Academy, UAE; IUBAT Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Abdur Rob; Chittagong Independent University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr MM Nurul Absar; AIUB Pro-Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Md Abdur Rahman; and Prof Dr Rajah Rasiah of Malaysia.
Industry representatives included Amer Salim, director of Knit Asia Ltd and Aurum Sweater Ltd; AKM Shahnawaj, managing director current charge of Dhaka Bank PLC; Niaz Rahim, group director of Rahimafrooz; Dr Ahmad Ahsan, director of Policy Research Institute; Mirza Sajeeb Rayhan, AmCham representative; Kamran T Rahman, president of MCCI; Dr Md Mosharraf Hossain from icddr,b; Dr Ben Bvepfepfe of CITL UK; and Emeka Henry Egson from Canada.
Throughout the day, two parallel sessions have featured 80 research paper presentations by faculty, students and scholars from local and international universities and institutions, the statement said.
A “PhD Colloquium and Paper Producing Workshop” has been conducted by leading international academics who provided guidance on the PhD journey and publishing research papers, it added.
