French Ambassador to Bangladesh had a courtesy call with ICT Adviser Nahid Islam
The French government is keen to train Bangladeshis on cyber security. The French Ambassador to Bangladesh Marie Masdupuy expressed the interest about her government while meeting with the Information and Broadcasting and Posts & Telecommunications and Information Technology Adviser Nahid Islam at the Secretariat on Thursday (August 29). Mutual cooperation between both countries was assured in the meeting.
It was informed in a press release by the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology. It is said that during the meeting, Advisor Nahid Islam welcomed the Ambassador of France to the self-governing Bangladesh which was recently achieved through the popular uprising of students. He also mentioned that the people of Bangladesh have always been interested in France.
Adviser to ambassador said, ‘Cyber security has now become as important as border security. In this case, it will be good for the country if the youth and officials get this training.’
He also said, “Even though we have been hearing about ‘Digital Bangladesh’ and ‘Smart Bangladesh’ for several years, there has been a lot of corruption and irregularities in this regard. The people of Bangladesh have not fully benefited from the amount of money invested in these projects. We are investigating the places of corruption first.”
When Ambassador Marie Masdupuy praised the steps taken by the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology in the recent floods, the advisor said that communication with the flood victims was very important; so, the internet was made free in the flood affected areas, and V-SATs (VSAT = Very Small Aperture Service) were installed in some districts. Generator fuel was supplied for free for uninterrupted power supply to mobile towers and it has been decided to install V-SAT in every district of the country so that it is possible to communicate with the concerned areas in any disaster.
There are opportunities to work in the ICT sector of Bangladesh; the country’s youth are proficient in information technology and are keen to work in this sector. The advisor also commented that the youth will do much better in the IT sector if they get incentives.
When Ambassador Marie Masdupuy expressed her interest in providing training to Bangladeshis on cyber security by the French government, the advisor said cyber security has now become as important as border security. In this case, if the youth and officials of the country can take this training, it will be good for the country.
When Ambassador Marie Masdupuy asked about the movement, the adviser said that a new Bangladesh was created through the students’ movement. Students led the movement and people from all walks of life participated. The government currently running the state is a government proposed by the students. Among the coordinators, two of us have come to the government and the rest are still functioning. They are acting as a pressure group from outside so that the aims and objectives of the movement are not disrupted and the government does the work properly.
Nahid Islam said, right now we want to create a national unity where everyone will work together to protect the interests of Bangladesh.
When the ambassador asked about media freedom and Ekattor TV journalist Farzana Rupa, the adviser said, “We are very aware of media freedom.” We want no innocent person to be victimized. Media freedom was taken away during the previous government. We do not want such incidents to happen in Bangladesh in the future. There are several serious allegations against Ekattor TV and Farzana Rupa which will be investigated and action will be taken. We want to create a new Bangladesh where everyone can express own opinion freely.
During the meeting, the Secretary of Posts and Telecommunications Division Dr. Mushfiqur Rahman and Secretary of Information and Communication Technology Division Md. Shamsul Arefin and other senior officials of the ministry were present.
