Industry-academia collaboration becomes essential in this age: Education Minister

Education and Primary and Mass Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon has stressed the need to strengthen industry-academia collaboration to harness the talent and skills of the country’s young population and accelerate economic development.

“Demographic dividend or young talent is the country’s biggest asset. In this new era, AI and modern technology have changed the nature of education. To lead Bangladesh in the future, we must give the highest priority to the education sector,” he said.

The minister made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a scholarship giving  ceremony organised by the Dhaka University Marketing Alumni Association (MAA) and Meghna Group of Industries (MGI) at the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Building of Dhaka University on Wednesday.

Milon said Bangladesh needs stronger links between educational institutions and industries so that students can acquire practical skills and secure employment soon after completing their university education.

“The coordination or linkage that needs to exist between industry and academia in our country is still not enough. In China and the developed world, large industrial institutions often have technical and higher education institutions within them. They develop skilled manpower through practical training, and companies hire them directly,” he said.

He called for strengthening similar linkages in Bangladesh, saying the country’s young people possess significant talent and skills.

Emphasising the need to turn the country’s population into skilled human resources, Milon said Bangladesh should expand technical and work-oriented education while equipping students with skills in modern technologies.

“If industrial institutions cooperate in the training and research of students, the benefits will extend beyond individuals and institutions to society as a whole,” he said.

The minister also highlighted the potential of Bangladesh’s marine resources, saying the country has a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone and a continental shelf extending to around 400 nautical miles.

He said, "The vast mineral and natural resources beneath the Bay of Bengal remain largely untapped. Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman recognised the potential of the Bay of Bengal in 1981, while the concept is now widely known around the world as the “Blue Economy”."

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90 students receive Tk21.6 lakh in scholarships

At the programme, 90 meritorious students of the Marketing Department of Dhaka University received a total of Tk21.6 lakh under the “MGI-MAA Scholarship”. Each student received Tk24,000.

The scholarship comes from the income of a Tk 1crore permanent fund established under the name “MGI-MAA Scholarship”. The Dhaka University Marketing Alumni Association and Meghna Group of Industries jointly run the scholarship programme to provide financial support to meritorious students and encourage them to pursue higher education and research.

Among the scholarship recipients, one student is from the 2019-20 academic year, two from 2020-21, two from 2021-22, 16 from 2022-23, 14 from 2023-24, 18 from 2024-25 and 37 from 2025-26.

Speaking as chief patron, Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof ABM Obaidul Islam said, "Financial difficulties will not prevent meritorious students from continuing their education."

He urged university alumni and financially capable members of society to come forward to support students in higher education and research.

Prof Obaidul Islam said, "The university has taken various initiatives for student welfare, including establishing the Tk1 crore permanent fund to provide scholarships to Marketing Department students."

He also called on alumni and corporate organisations to contribute alongside government funding to improve education and research at the university.

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The programme was chaired by Marketing Alumni Association President Prof Mohammad Ashraful Islam Chowdhury.

DU Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education) Prof Abdus Salam, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Administration) Prof Mohammad Almujaddade Alfasane and Marketing Department Chairman Prof Sirajul Haque attended the programme as special guests.

Barrister Tasneem Mostafa, director of Meghna Group of Industries, attended as the guest of honour, while Marketing Alumni Association General Secretary Khandaker Md Rafiq Hasan delivered the welcome address.