Bangladesh to Adopt Chinese Technical Education Model

Bangladesh is preparing to introduce China’s technical education model to strengthen the country’s technical and vocational education system, Education and Primary and Mass Education Minister Dr ANM Ehsanul Haque Milan said. The initiative includes bringing technical teachers from China and placing greater emphasis on third-language education alongside Bangla and English.

The minister made the remarks on Saturday (October 3) while addressing a discussion and exchange meeting titled “Public Thoughts on the Development of Kachua” at the International Mother Language Institute in Segunbagicha, Dhaka.

Referring to previous initiatives in technical education, Milan said successive governments had placed importance on the sector, but the expected progress had not been achieved. The government is now working to adapt China’s technical education experience to Bangladesh.

“We are bringing China’s technical education model into our technical education system. We went there. An agreement has been signed and the work is ongoing. We will bring teachers from China,” the minister said.

He said significant progress had been made during the government’s first eight months and that the initiative would advance further in the coming days.

The minister also said the government would place greater emphasis on a third language in addition to Bangla and English. Chinese could be considered as one of the options, he said.

During a post-China-visit press briefing in August, Milan had also outlined plans to use China’s experience to make Bangladesh’s technical and vocational education more modern and employment-oriented. The plans included improvements in curricula, laboratories and teacher training within an integrated framework.

Technical School-College in Saudi Arabia

The minister also announced an initiative to establish a technical school and college in Saudi Arabia to develop a skilled workforce and support overseas employment.

“Bangladesh has a workforce. We need to develop their skills. Skilled manpower can be used to increase remittances. For this reason, we have taken an initiative to establish a technical school and college in Saudi Arabia,” he said.

One Technical Institution in Every Upazila

Milan said the government plans to establish one technical school and college in every upazila.

He acknowledged that previous governments had also worked on technical education infrastructure, but said some projects had faced problems in location and planning. Referring to a technical school and college established at the residence of a former minister in Kachua, he said an existing college could not simply be relocated.

The government therefore plans to establish one technical school and college in each upazila, he said.

Common Examinations for Schools and Madrasas

On madrasa education, the minister said the system was progressing despite following a somewhat different educational track.

He said school and madrasa students would study the same textbooks and sit for examinations using the same question papers.

BNP National Executive Committee member and central vice-president of the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Mohila Dal, Nazmun Nahar Baby, attended the event as a special guest.

//DBTech/FTP/MVNO/BPC//