CPSC and DTE Officials During the Program’s Inauguration Ceremony
The Colombo Plan Staff College (CPSC) facilitated a program focusing on the technicalities of industry-institution collaboration and partnership in Bangladesh at the Technical Teachers’ Training College in Dhaka from December 11-15, 2016. The program is in partnership with the Madrasha Education Division of the Ministry of Education, Bangladesh and was attended by 45 participants from all over the country.
The program pursued to instill to the participants the general concepts and principles of Industry- Academic Linkage System. The lessons are designed to enable them to comprehend innovative models and approaches for Industry-Academic Linkage System. The open forums and panel discussions are also included for the participants to talk about the prospects and challenges of Industry-Institution linkages in the TVET Sector of Bangladesh.
Dr. Ram Hari Lamichhane delivering his speech with DTE Officials in Dhaka
The event was supervised by Dr. Ram Hari Lamichhane, CPSC Director General and Mr. Ashoke Kumar Biswas, the Additional Secretary of the Technical and Madrasha Education Division, Ministry of Education and also the Director General of the Directorate of Technical Education. Program Coordination was facilitated by Prof. Dr. G. Kulanthaivel, CPSC Seconded Faculty Consultant and Mr. A. N. M Salah Uddin Khan Director (PIW) Directorate of Technical Education (DTE).
Local expertise was delivered through the efforts of Mr. Abdur Rafique, National Professional Consultant of the ILO TVET Reform Project and also a former National Program Officer and Program Adviser of UNESCO in Dhaka. In addition, Engr. Md. Jahangir Alam, former CPSC Faculty Specialist from 2010-2012 and the current Assistant Director for Planning & Development in the Directorate of Technical Education, also facilitated the classroom instruction as a local resource person.
Dr. Kulanthaivel with the participants (left) and Mr. Abdur Rafique, local expert, listening to the participants’ presentations
The program was opened on December 11, 2016 by several important officials and guests from the TVET and Higher Education sector of Bangladesh. Mr. Salah Uddin Khan from DTE delivered a welcome speech that highlighted the fruitful cooperation of the country and CPSC in capitalizing on efforts to enhance TVET delivery.
Mr. Md. Sohorab Hussain, the Secretary of the Secondary and Higher Education Division of the Ministry of Education, was the chief guest during the inauguration. In his speech, he affirmed the strong ties of CPSC and Bangladesh and wished for the organization’s continued success in facing the realities of TVET. Mr. Md. Emran, Project Director of STEP, Bangladesh, also gave a short speech in relation to the event.
Themes discussed in the program include: (1) Building Industry-Academic Linkages in TVET System, (2) Innovative Models and Approaches in Industry Academic Linkages System, (3) Industry-Institution Linkages: Trends, Prospects and Challenges in TVET Sector and (4) Employment Market Demand and Supply of Workforce.
To supplement the lessons generated by the in-country program, CPSC also organized a National Seminar with the theme “TVET Beyond 2015: Trends and Perspectives” at the same venue on December 14, 2016, attended by 78 participants. The said seminar hopes to elucidate different strategies and approaches towards sustainable development of TVET systems. It also tackled and identified the issues, challenges in integrating concepts of sustainability in TVET. Through the discussions, it is also hoped that this program will serve as a platform for experience sharing & concept leveling on TVET beyond 2015.
Key speakers invited in the event include: Dr. Ram Hari Lamichhane, CPSC Director General; Mr. Abdur Rafique, National Professional Consultant of the ILO TVET Reform Project, Bangladesh; Mr. Shafquat Haider, Chairman of ISC-IT and Director, FBCCI Bangladesh and Prof. Dr. G. Kulanthaivel, Program Coordinator and CPSC Faculty Consultant.
Other than public-private partnership issues in industry and TVET, the speakers tackled topics such as the APACC Accreditation, Sustainable Development Goals, Public-Private Partnership in Sustainable Development and Strengthening TVET through ICT.
It is hoped that through this program, CPSC will be able to contribute to the raising of awareness and provision of skills and values necessary to put Industry- Academic Linkage System for TVET into practice particularly in emerging economies such as Bangladesh.
The participants pose in front of the Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban or the National Parliament House of Bangladesh
