Our attention in the recent past has been drawn to a significant aspect in our national paradigm -- the shortage of skilled workers.
While Bangladesh has been able to move forward in the RMG sector because of price competitiveness, we have not been able to break the glass ceiling of fashion design due to absence of our own international brands and up-market quality.
Comparably, India has been able to break this barrier.
Attention has also been drawn to working conditions in RMG factories where our apparel workers sometimes suffer from lack of compliance with regard to workplace safety and the number of hours they have to work per week as compared to Cambodia and India.
Nevertheless, at this juncture, one needs to remember that Bangladesh, a country with about 170 million, has an edge over other countries.
It is our demographic dividend. It is this factor that could help us to achieve technological and sociological transformations through our more than 100 million citizens, under the age of 30.
The world, according to sociologists, is passing through a silent revolution.
Automation, development of artificial intelligence, advances in computer power and technology are driving this change.
Those with hard skills are also able to start their own businesses as micro-entrepreneurs in the domain of e-commerce and innovation that goes beyond the realm of linear and one-dimensional patterns.
In Bangladesh, this silent transformation is already being felt in manufacturing and some other business sectors associated with digitalization and technical education.
These elements have led many involved with creating skill to direct their attention to the need for technical education, pertaining to marketing and management of scant financial sources but also to fostering the principle of innovation within university students
This would help to prepare students to be self-employed, particularly in areas that are associated with electrical or computer engineering and digital technology.
At this juncture, Bangladesh, a developing country, is on the way of becoming a middle income country.
This change would also mean the creation of an adequate pool of technical resources that would enable us to keep pace with the global market and also be able to contribute towards the development of the country.
However, this process has also generated a subtle sociological problem.
It relates to women.
They face a sociological challenge when they start seeking managerial positions instead of jobs as trained workers within the matrix of industrial functionality.
They also expect their employers to provide them with greater security and better financial provisions. Unfortunately, sometimes, employers seem to be unable to comprehend the multi-dimensional aspects of this issue.
They need to remember that developed countries, on the other hand, have used this technological enhancement among women by appointing several of them as CEOs of important organizations and institutions.
Such encouragement through high level appointments has been able to create confidence building and has also become an example of gender empowerment and equality.
No discussion on enhancing the latent potential of our demographic dividend would be complete without reference to the important task of learning foreign languages. This is an important key for opening up new dimensions.
We have nearly 8.7 million expatriate workers from Bangladesh working in several nations throughout the world. Both our government as well as the private sector needs to address the issue of their security.
Muhammad Zamir, a former ambassador, is an analyst specialized in foreign affairs, right to information, and good governance. He can be reached at [email protected].
