Technical and vocational education top priority for Bangladesh, says education minister

The government is giving the highest priority to technical and vocational education, Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon has said.

Technical education plays a very important role in the country’s socio-economic development, he said at a national dialogue in Dhanmondi on Sunday, the education ministry said.

“We need to move away from the idea of receiving only conventional education. There is no alternative to technical education for building a developed Bangladesh,” he said.

“Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has adopted a plan to turn the country's large population into human resources. We are moving forward with that goal in mind,” he added.

Milon said the focus must shift towards practical skills that can prepare people for jobs at home and abroad.

He said skilled people with technical education were in high demand around the world, while migrant workers were one of Bangladesh's major sources of foreign currency earnings.

“If we can train them to become skilled before sending them abroad, our economy will become more prosperous. For this reason, greater importance must be given to technical education,” he said.

As part of the initiative, the government plans to establish four more engineering colleges in Bangladesh, he said.

“We also want to develop Dhaka Polytechnic Institute as a model institution. An initiative is being taken for a separate project for this,” Milon said.

Technical and Madrasah Education Division Secretary Md Daud Miah, Daffodil Group Chairman Md Sabur Khan and CCN Polytechnic Institute Chairman Md Tariqul Islam Chowdhury also spoke at the event.