The government plans to set up 2,000 digital labs with modern equipment across the country for expanding ICT education to build a digital Bangladesh with its own fund worth around Tk299 crore.
Information Communication Technology (ICT) division under the ministry of Post, Telecommunication initiated the project which was approved at a recent ECNEC meeting as one of the priority projects.
A total of 2,000 digital labs will be established in 2,000 schools in 64 districts to expedite multimedia education, according to project proposal.
Under the project, each school will get 17 laptops, 17 set headphones, one multimedia projector (with a screen), one 3G-pocket router, one scanner and one printer machine. The government will also bear the cost of 3G internet wifi bill for the first 6 months.
According to the project proposal, a total of 563 digital labs will be established in Dhaka division, 387 in Chittagong division, 228 in Khulna division, 295 in Rajshahi division, 218 in Rangpur division, 183 in Barisal division while 46 digital labs in Sylhet division.
Among them, 64 digital labs in 64 districts will be used as language-training labs where students will get opportunity to learn 9 languages.
Under the project, a total of 1,000 teachers will be trained as a master trainers of English, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, French, Spanish, German, Arabic, Russian from the selected school.
Besides, the ICT division will also supply a total of 17 chairs, 9 tables to each school along with a cash amount of Tk30,000 for lab room renovation works.
“The government is determined to establish digital Bangladesh by 2021 with an aim to create new jobs along with the on going development,” said Project Director Md. Emdadul Haque, who is also an additional secretary), while talking to the Dhaka Tribune.
Terming the project a revolutionary one, he stated that the project would play a vital role in expanding the country’s ICT education at the grass root level across the country.
According to an estimate of the ICT division, it will cost around Tk299 for setting up 2,000 labs while ICT division will provide all the technical assistances to the schools selected under the project.
As per the directive of Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina, ICT division initiated the project last year. During the same year, ICT division invited 64 Deputy Commissioners (DCs) to submit a list of schools with well-established infrastructure and also MPO enlisted.
Initially, the ICT division got a list of 4,000 high schools, of them an expert team has selected 2,000 school in it’s final list.
The tender for refurbishing works of the project has already been approved and rest of the process will be completed by December next.
A high official of ICT division said, setting up of 2,000 labs in schools would be one of the top priority project which would be a milestone for the development of ICT sector as well as the speedy digitalisation of Bangladesh.
