On May 27,Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed her firm optimism that new educated generation would be able to create a safe and secure world for future generations to ensure peace and development instead of war and destruction.
In this regard, she urged the young generation to work closely together as one family and said the day is not too far when they would sweep away all challenges and barriers caused by the climate change and natural disasters.
The Prime Minister was delivering a speech on “Education and Empowerment of the Youth” at the renowned Waseda University here.
She also joined an interaction session with the students there.
Vice president of the university Uchida Katsuichi also spoke on the occasion.
Putting emphasis on empowerment of the young generation through education, she said, it is the duty and responsibility of our generation to ensure empowerment of the young students to face and overcome those challenges.
Sheikh Hasina said her government has given highest priority to education as the educated youths are highly empowered to meet the challenges before them.
In this regard, she said education sector is receiving the highest allocation in country’s annual budgets covering 2.3 percent of GDP and 14 percent of government expenditure to ensure “Education for All” and achieve the MDGs.
“Our government is providing free textbooks to the students up to secondary level and stipends to the poor meritorious students at all levels, she said.
She mentioned that in January this year, 317 million text books were distributed free of cost among 37 million students. “These have also helped in achieving gender parity up to higher secondary level and it continues until graduation with free tuition for girls,” she said.
The Prime Minister said such noble initiatives of her government have made it possible to ensure almost 100 percent enrollment at primary level of all children.
Mentioning Japan as the trusted and largest development partner of Bangladesh, she said its economic assistance helped Bangladesh’s socioeconomic progress, poverty reduction and achievement of many of the MDGs.
Source: UNBconnect