BNP govt considers education as investment, not expenditure: Bobby Hajjaj

Bangla Press Desk: State Minister for Education Bobby Hajjaj on Thursday said the BNP government considers education as investment, not expenditure.

"The BNP-led government will not consider education as just an expenditure sector, rather education will be prime investment of the state - the main factory for creating human resources and the main project for nation-building," he said.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, two days after assuming office, Bobby Hajjaj, also state minister for primary and mass education ministry, said under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, the allocation for the education sector will be increased to 5% of the GDP in phases.

"This is our government's election pledge," he said.

Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon also spoke at the press conference.

Secondary and Higher Education Division Secretary Rehana Perven, Technical and Madrasa Education Division Secretary Muhammad Rafiqul Islam, and Primary and Mass Education Secretary Abu Taher Md Masud Rana were present.

At the press conference, Bobby outlined the ministry's 12-point agenda for policy reforms and development and a specific roadmap.

According to international standards, the target of allocating 15-20% of the total government expenditure to the education sector should be achieved, he said.

To this end, he said, the education ministry will take a three-year “Fiscal Uplift Plan” in coordination with the Ministry of Finance.

Mentioning the fact that a large portion of the development budget remained unused in the past years as a 'loss of opportunity for students', the state minister said from now on, the implementation of development projects will be milestone-based and transparent.

He said E-GP and pre-procurement planning will be made mandatory in June.

Bobby said technical education will be included from the secondary level and a “bridge course” of technical education will be introduced with general education so that no student's career is “dead end”.

Considering the global demand for labour market and higher education, the government has decided to make a third language education mandatory along with Bangla and English, he said.

Mentioning the radical changes in textbooks and examination system, the state minister said an item bank and blueprint-based examination system will be introduced to encourage creative thinking instead of memorisation.

He announced the launch of Higher Education and Research Innovation Grant to develop universities not only as teaching centres but also as “knowledge institutions”.

In addition, Bobby said, plans for loans for talented students and special assistance for higher education abroad are also on the government's agenda.

To restore transparency in education administration, a “public dashboard” will be launched on the ministry's website, he said.

Through this, citizens will be able to monitor project progress, book distribution and class hours, he added.

The state minister said, "We will not do politics with education. We will build a nation through education. Prime Minister Tarique's goal is not certificates, but capacity building. The Ministry of Education will work to achieve that capacity."

Source: daily Sun

BP/SP