The education sector has received a Tk7,000 crore boost in the proposed budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year.
The allocation for education has been increased to Tk88,162 crore, as compared to Tk81,449 crore in the revised budget for FY2022-23.
The Primary and Mass Education Division has been allocated Tk34,722 crore, Secondary and Higher Education Division Tk42,838 crore, and Technical and Madrasa Education Division Tk10,602 crore.
Placing the budget in the Jatiya Sangsad yesterday, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said: "Enhancing the quality of education at all levels is our special commitment. We have been reaping the benefits of the government's policies as well as targeted spending in education and skill development over the past 14 years".
Pledging to continue the government's regular activities in the primary education sector, Kamal said greater importance is being given to technology-based education to equip students to build a ‘Smart Bangladesh.'
Noting that a total of 59,000 laptops, multimedia projectors and sound systems have been provided along with internet connectivity to more than 50,000 government primary schools across the country to set up multimedia classrooms, he said 800 officers have been trained on ICT and more than 100,000 teachers have been given hands-on training to create digital educational content.
Speaking about secondary and higher education, the minister said: "We are continuing our efforts to transform educational institutions into modern and model institutions. A total of 351 secondary schools and 371 private colleges have been nationalized between 2009 and April 2023".
As many as 315 private secondary schools located in upazila headquarters, except government schools, have been converted into model schools, he said, adding that the construction work of 180 buildings has been completed for government post-graduate colleges located at the district headquarters.
"Of the 1,610 colleges selected under the private colleges' development project, the construction of ICT-friendly buildings has been completed in 1,473 colleges," Kamal said.
Under the Secondary Education Sector Development Plan (SESDP), 33 model madrasas have been set up along with 62 new schools in underprivileged areas, he said, adding that 176 academic buildings are being constructed along with 33 hostels under the Expansion of Science Education in Government Colleges Project.
Mentioning that a total of 33,285 multimedia classrooms and 11,307 computer labs have been set up in selected educational institutions since 2009 to enhance students' proficiency in information technology and to modernize teaching methods, the minister said a further 64,925 multimedia classrooms and 12,000 labs will be set up in future.
He also pointed out that digital textbooks are being developed for all levels of education, with many of them already being available online.
A total of 710 ICT learning centres have been set up in selected educational institutions, he added.
About technical and madrasah education, the minister said: "Our government considers the 'strength of youth' as the source of the 'prosperity of Bangladesh'. Therefore, we are implementing various activities to promote technical and vocational education to maximize this strength".
"At the same time, we are modernizing madrasah education. Our efforts have enhanced the interest of the people of the country in technical education. It is evident in the enrollment rate in technical education in 2022, which is 17.2 percent compared to just 1 percent in 2010," he added.
The minister further said the government is working tirelessly to meet the Sustainable Development Goal of increasing the enrolment rate in technical education to 30% by 2030.
Experts call for more focus on education quality improvement
Education experts praised the increase in the allocation for education but said that the allocation for quality improvement in education is still insufficient compared to Bangladesh's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
As a result of the insufficient allocation, the education sector may continue to face the same problems as before, they opined.
The proposed allocation is only 1.76 % of GDP (gross domestic product), while UNESCO suggests allocating 4-6% of GDP to education, said the educationists.
Educationist Rasheda K Chowdhury told Dhaka Tribune: “The demand to separate education as a full-fledged sector has been ignored in this year's budget as well.”
She called for further increases to curtail school dropouts and mitigate academic losses due to Covid-19 but thanked the government for continuing to provide sufficient allocation to ensure social security and mid-day meals.
