Economic growth in the information technology sector of the country is not possible without skilled human resources. But still there is shortage of skilled manpower in this sector. Questions are also raised about the quality of students who graduate from different universities of the country every year. Also, the challenges like digital literacy, infrastructural deficiency, policy barriers and VAT-tax in this sector are seen as obstacles in the path of achieving Smart Bangladesh 2041 vision.
Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) and Policy Research Institute (PRI) jointly organized a round table discussion on ‘Importance of ICT for economic growth in Bangladesh’ held at BASIS Auditorium on Tuesday, June 11, 2024. The roundtable discussed the economic contribution of the ICT sector, its role, challenges and supportive policies.
BASIS Vice President (Administration) Syed Mohammad Kamal presented the keynote at the seminar.
Economist Dr. Ahsan H. Mansoor pointed out that there is a huge difference in the use of ICT tools and services among the marginal people of the country due to the evident digital literacy in the main article. He said that 3 lakh people have already been employed in the ICT sector in the country. It is expected that by 2025, another 5 lakh jobs will be created. Bangladesh exports more than 30 ICT services, of which 84% comes from IT services. The ICT sector contributes 1.25% to the national GDP. Along with the government, BASIS has set a target of increasing ICT exports to USD 5 billion by 2029. However, the quality of graduates coming out of universities every year is below that of BUET and IBA. BASIS should look into why this is so. At the same time BASIS has to take special steps to meet this deficiency. Future-oriented skilled manpower should be developed by adopting specialized training programs using e-learning platforms. Otherwise, the target will not be achieved.
In his presentation, he showed that, occupying only 4% of the global ICT market of US$ 550 billion, Bangladesh can increase its ICT exports to US$ 22 billion and become an important contributor to the economy in addition to the textile industry sector, and the information and communication technology sector.
BASIS President Russell T Ahmed, Policy Research Institute (PRI) Executive Director, Bangladesh Bank Payment Systems Department Additional Director Mohammad Nazim Uddin, BASIS Senior Vice President M Rashidul Hasan, Vice President (Finance) Iqbal Ahmed Fakhrul Hasan, BASIS Director Mostafizur Rahman Sohel, M Asif Rahman, Dr. Muhammad Risalat Siddique, Mir Shahrukh Islam and Biplab Ghosh Rahul, SMC Advisory Services Ltd Director Snehashish Barua and others took part in discussion.
Speakers said that information and communication technology has become very important for modern economic development. The government aims to transform the country into a knowledge-based economy implementing “Smart Bangladesh” by 2041. And to do this, the domestic technology institutions should be given the opportunity to achieve self-sufficiency in the use of technology in education, agriculture, health, industry, banks and other important sectors. Tax burden, high cost of doing business, adequate incentives by removing financing barriers, local business friendly procurement policies, regulatory barriers and cyber security should be ensured.
At the seminar, BASIS President Russell T Ahmed said that various industries have sought duty or VAT benefits on their raw materials and the government is considering it. But our raw material is our human resource. Here they are not getting duty or VAT exemption, but paying tax on this human resource.
Questioning why I have to pay 27.5 percent tax or VAT on this human resource training, he added, “If we could have waived this tax, many training centers would have come forward. We could use this money to create new manpower and expand the business.”
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