Sylhet Strategy: Special Assistant Spurs Sustainable Startups
Sylhet’s Companyganj hosts the 168-acre Sylhet Hi-Tech Park, of which 120 acres remain allocable. Although nine companies have been assigned a total of 46 acres, only one is currently in production. Highlighting the underutilized land, Special Assistant Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, in charge of the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology, urged both local and expatriate Sylhet communities to invest in the remaining 74 acres and 10,000 square feet to create sustainable employment. He also called for cooperation from local administration and political leaders to reclaim unused land held by BTCL and the Postal Department in the tea-rich tourism city. Additionally, he emphasized initiating skill development programs for workers involved in white stone quarrying.
Taiyeb made these remarks on Saturday, September 6, at a discussion session on “Building a Prosperous Bangladesh through Information Technology: Newly Enacted Laws, Policies, and Reforms” at the Sylhet Deputy Commissioner’s conference room. On improving internet services, he appealed to the mayor and local administration to avoid cutting fiber lines arbitrarily, saying, “The invisible inconvenience is greater than the visible inconvenience of road cutting. That is why lines go down. Freelancers cannot work. The economy suffers. Essential services are disrupted. That is why the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications will address this collectively.”
Responding to questions about ongoing cyber security cases, Taiyeb expressed regret and clarified, “The Cyber Security Ordinance has been passed to remove nine clauses under which 95 percent of cases were filed. We have repealed all oppressive clauses from the Awami League era. There is no element of citizen harassment here.” He further advised anyone with pending cases to approach local law enforcement and courts while expressing confidence that the elected government will correct any legislative gaps in Parliament.
On curbing online gambling, Taiyeb admitted, “During the previous government, around 250 million Taka was spent to acquire technology to block specific sites or apps. But the technology features were not significant, so we cannot shut gambling sites or apps. We have held meetings with stakeholders at BTRC, and we hope to achieve this.”
On youth skill development, he stated, “The interim government is providing pilot training in schools and madrasas on cyber security, freelancing, Python, and MySQL instead of fake trainings and low-quality laptop distributions in previous years.” He added, “From now on, training will be conducted with NSDA-certified certificates, not preferred vendors.”
Regarding internet pricing and service quality, Taiyeb noted, “A new telecom policy has been introduced to increase competition. We have removed MVNO technical constraints. We expect new SIM providers to enter, improving both competition and service quality. Satellite internet has improved ICP services, but cellular mobile technology still lags. We have initiated development of 2,500 Telitok sites.”
Speaking on Sylhet Hi-Tech Park, Taiyeb said, “Among the nine companies, only RAGS is likely in production. I have requested future plans from the remaining eight. If political standoffs prevent them from using the land, we will reclaim it and consider allocation for Sylhet communities locally or abroad. Currently, 74 acres are allocable, and five companies have been given 15,000 square feet on 25,000 square feet outside the park. I believe two more spaces can be reclaimed. Additionally, much land of the Postal Department and BTCL has been underutilized over the past 15 years. We seek support from the mayor, deputy commissioner, and local political leaders. We invite the local business community to invest in Sylhet Hi-Tech Park.”
Secretary of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, Abdun Naser Khan, added that the Wi-Fi network will be strengthened to support tourism development in Sylhet and local authorities will provide cyber security training to students.
The session, chaired by Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Md. Sarwar Alam, included remarks from former Sylhet City Mayor and BNP Chairperson’s advisor Ariful Haque Chowdhury, Sylhet District BNP President Abdul Kaiyum Chowdhury, Acting President of Sylhet Metropolitan BNP Rezaul Hasan Qais Lodi, Metropolitan General Secretary Imdad Hossain Chowdhury, Metropolitan Jamat-e-Islami Naib Amir Dr. Nurul Islam Babul, and Public Prosecutors Ashiq Uddin Ashuk and Badrul Islam Chowdhury.
Participants noted that, over the past fifteen years, this is the first time such an extensive dialogue involving Sylhet’s civil society, political leaders, journalists, and local administration has been organized.
