Organised, skilled youth country's most valuable asset: President

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday said an organised, skilled and committed youth population is the country's most valuable asset, stressing the need for collective efforts to ensure quality education, modern technological skills and sustainable employment opportunities for young people.

In a message marking National Youth Day 2026, which is to be observed Sunday, he said the youth are the vital force of a nation and the principal determinant of its development.

He said young people had played a leading role in all major democratic achievements of the country, including the historic Language Movement, the Liberation War, the mass uprising of the 1990s and the mass uprising of students and people in 2024.

If the youth are developed into skilled and productive human resources, the journey towards building a self-reliant, developed and modern Bangladesh will be accelerated, he said.

Describing this year's theme, "Skilled Youth Will Build the Nation, Bangladesh for All", as appropriate, the President said a large portion of the country's population consisted of young people, representing its greatest potential.

He stressed the need to make proper use of this demographic dividend to ensure inclusive development and achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

To this end, quality and employment-oriented education, modern technological skills, improved healthcare services and sustainable employment opportunities must be ensured, he said.

The President recalled that Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman had laid the foundation for a comprehensive vision and programmes to transform young people into a productive workforce, while former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia had strengthened that legacy.

He said the present government had undertaken various programmes and initiatives involving relevant public and private stakeholders to further strengthen and modernise youth development efforts.

As part of these initiatives, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Department of Youth Development are providing training in various fields, including agriculture, handicrafts, technical education, freelancing and artificial intelligence.

He expressed hope that the initiatives undertaken by the government and private sector would help develop young people into entrepreneurs and self-reliant citizens.

Highlighting the importance of young people's active participation in building a healthy and beautiful society, the President called upon them to organise social movements and undertake voluntary activities to prevent drug abuse, protect the environment, stop violence against women and children, and resist social degradation.

He also urged the private sector, social organisations, affluent individuals and families to work alongside the government to ensure the overall development and welfare of young people and help build a just and humane state.

"Let ensuring dignified employment and a bright future for young people be our collective commitment," he said.

The President wished overall success to all programmes organised to mark National Youth Day 2026.