The prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, on Wednesday said her government has agreed in principle to constitute Higher Education Commission, an autonomous statutory body, to ensure quality of education at universities and their accountability as well.
She said the government is also actively considering constitution of an independent accreditation council to ascertain the level of standard of private universities.
Sheikh Hasina said this while awarding Prime Minister’s Award to brilliant students of public universities at her office in Dhaka.
A total of 82 students of 22 universities were given the award for their brilliant academic results in 2010.
Sheikh Hasina urged the public university authorities to make efforts for becoming more financially dependent on their own income and said the autonomous rights of the universities are being curved due their excess dependence on public finance.
The education minister, Nurul Islam Nahid, and Member of the University Grants Commission Atful Hye Shibly spoke, among others, on the occasion while UGC chairman AK Azad Chowdhury was in the chair.
On behalf of the award winners, Bivuti Bhushan Sikder of Dhaka University and Nazia Nafsin of BUET expressed their feelings on the occasion.
The prime minister said her government has enacted Private University Act 2010 to bring dynamism in the academic and administrative activities of the private universities.
Besides, the government has constituted a high-power committee to review the guidelines formulated for foreign higher education institutes to set up their branches and begin academic activities in Bangladesh, she said, adding it would help the Bangladeshi students to pursue world standard education in the country.
She proposed the public universities authorities to constitute a trust fund in every university with the support of the alumni to take development projects.
Any assistance to the education trust fund would enjoy tax waiver from the government, she declared.
Sheikh Hasina said her government has taken steps to open up the scope of higher education for all.
To help the students of poor families, she said the present government has established the ‘Prime Minister Education Trust Fund’ with a primary allocation of Tk 1000 crore. Moreover, more money is being mobilised for the fund from social corporate sector, she said.
Over the last three and a half years the government has established seven public universities and prepared drafts for establishing five new ones, she said.
The five new universities are- Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Maritime University, Islami Arabia Affiliated University, Digital University of Bangladesh, Khulna Agricultural University and Barisal Marine University, she added.
Urging the award recipients to serve the country with devotion, the prime minister said, you must be guided by the motto of ‘giving something to people’ instead of ‘getting something for yourself’.
She said the Awami League government is serving the people as their Sebak (servant), not Shasak (master). ‘You have to uphold this spirit in your practical life to build Bangladesh as a prosperous country,’ she said.
Referring to her government’s initiative to formulate a coherent education policy in 2010, the prime minister said, in the education policy we have given equal importance to mass, primary, madrasa and general education.
She said five years ago the total number of university students was eight lakh, which now stands at 22 lakh. Bangladesh is now the fourth country in the world in terms of number of university students.
The prime minister also urged all to make their efforts to continue country’s democracy, saying development will be a far cry without democracy.
She said the government is also actively considering constitution of an independent accreditation council to ascertain the level of standard of private universities.
Sheikh Hasina said this while awarding Prime Minister’s Award to brilliant students of public universities at her office in Dhaka.
A total of 82 students of 22 universities were given the award for their brilliant academic results in 2010.
Sheikh Hasina urged the public university authorities to make efforts for becoming more financially dependent on their own income and said the autonomous rights of the universities are being curved due their excess dependence on public finance.
The education minister, Nurul Islam Nahid, and Member of the University Grants Commission Atful Hye Shibly spoke, among others, on the occasion while UGC chairman AK Azad Chowdhury was in the chair.
On behalf of the award winners, Bivuti Bhushan Sikder of Dhaka University and Nazia Nafsin of BUET expressed their feelings on the occasion.
The prime minister said her government has enacted Private University Act 2010 to bring dynamism in the academic and administrative activities of the private universities.
Besides, the government has constituted a high-power committee to review the guidelines formulated for foreign higher education institutes to set up their branches and begin academic activities in Bangladesh, she said, adding it would help the Bangladeshi students to pursue world standard education in the country.
She proposed the public universities authorities to constitute a trust fund in every university with the support of the alumni to take development projects.
Any assistance to the education trust fund would enjoy tax waiver from the government, she declared.
Sheikh Hasina said her government has taken steps to open up the scope of higher education for all.
To help the students of poor families, she said the present government has established the ‘Prime Minister Education Trust Fund’ with a primary allocation of Tk 1000 crore. Moreover, more money is being mobilised for the fund from social corporate sector, she said.
Over the last three and a half years the government has established seven public universities and prepared drafts for establishing five new ones, she said.
The five new universities are- Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Maritime University, Islami Arabia Affiliated University, Digital University of Bangladesh, Khulna Agricultural University and Barisal Marine University, she added.
Urging the award recipients to serve the country with devotion, the prime minister said, you must be guided by the motto of ‘giving something to people’ instead of ‘getting something for yourself’.
She said the Awami League government is serving the people as their Sebak (servant), not Shasak (master). ‘You have to uphold this spirit in your practical life to build Bangladesh as a prosperous country,’ she said.
Referring to her government’s initiative to formulate a coherent education policy in 2010, the prime minister said, in the education policy we have given equal importance to mass, primary, madrasa and general education.
She said five years ago the total number of university students was eight lakh, which now stands at 22 lakh. Bangladesh is now the fourth country in the world in terms of number of university students.
The prime minister also urged all to make their efforts to continue country’s democracy, saying development will be a far cry without democracy.
