UGC Unveils Five-Year AI-Driven Higher Education Roadmap

Bangladesh's University Grants Commission (UGC) has finalized the draft of a five-year National Action Plan (2026–2030) aimed at transforming higher education through artificial intelligence (AI), digital learning systems, research and innovation, aligning universities with global academic standards and future labour market demands.

The draft, titled "Higher Education Transformation: National Action Plan for Achieving Sustainable Excellence (2026–2030)," was finalized at a meeting chaired by Education Minister Dr. A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon at the UGC headquarters on Thursday.

UGC Chairman Professor Dr. Mamun Ahmed said the roadmap integrates recommendations from the recent national workshop on higher education transformation, government priorities and the commission's strategic vision.

The plan identifies five strategic priorities: graduate employability and demand-driven education; stronger university-industry collaboration and global competitiveness; digital transformation and AI integration; faculty development and professional excellence; research, innovation and internationalization; and governance, quality assurance and institutional reforms.

According to the UGC chairman, by 2030 all universities are expected to implement Outcome-Based Education (OBE), Learning Management Systems (LMS), AI-enabled teaching, digital administration, career development centres, internship programmes and graduate employment tracking systems.

The roadmap also targets doubling research publications and patents, expanding international research partnerships, establishing a national higher education database and positioning Bangladesh as a regional hub for higher education and research.

Education Minister Dr. A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon said the UGC should lead the country's higher education transformation by adopting best practices from China, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Pakistan, while tailoring reforms to Bangladesh's context.

He emphasized that Bangladesh aims not only to produce talented graduates but also globally competitive human resources. The minister also called for a comprehensive national policy on international student recruitment, academic collaboration and higher education internationalization.

The meeting was attended by UGC members Professor Dr. Mohammad Anwar Hossain, Professor Dr. Md. Saidur Rahman, Professor Dr. Mohammad Ayub Islam, Professor Dr. Abdullah-Al-Mamun, UGC Secretary Dr. Md. Fakhrul Islam, and senior officials from the Ministry of Education and the UGC.
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