Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today asked all concerned to work together to further improve quality education in matching global standard. “The quality of education has improved a lot in the country. We want to keep pace with the world standard improving quality education further. It is our target and we have to work for attaining the goal,” she said. The premier made the remarks while addressing as the chief guest a national council of principals of the colleges affiliated to the National University and scholarship distribution ceremony-2023 at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) here. Briefly describing her government’s measures to ensure overall development of the education, she said they initiated every possible step to make generations worthy as they can cope with the ever-changing world in the age of science and technology. “We have taken steps to make the education system multidimensional. We don’t want to lag behind. We have to maintain the similar pace of global education as our children are meritorious,” she said. As part of the initiative of making education multidimensional, she said they have established universities in every district, four medical universities in four divisional headquarters, Islamic Arabic University, digital university, Aerospace and Aviation University and medical colleges alongside setting up science and technology universities. The premier said her government has wanted to build the young generation as skilled workforce to meet its ever-growing demand at home and abroad ahead of the fourth industrial revolution. “We have set up 39 high-tech parks, computer incubation training centres to create scope of getting education on nano-technology and artificial intelligence and others so that the generations after generations can make one step ahead,” she said Sheikh Hasina asked the principals and teachers to make the student as worthy citizens of the independent Bangladesh. “Educate the youths in such a way as they can build themselves as worthy citizens of independent Bangladesh,” she said. She further said that today’s generation will be the leaders of tomorrow’s Bangladesh. The premier asked the students to give more attention on study and be patriotic and discharge duty for the welfare of the country and its people. She reiterated her commitment to make the fortune of Bangladeshi people as envisioned by the Father of the Nation by giving everyone an improved and worthy life through making Bangladesh a Smart Sonar Bangla free from hunger, poverty and any sort of exploitation by 2041. “It is my word that I will continue my work to change the fate of the people of Bangladesh till my last breath,” she said. The prime minister handed over scholarship among 10 insolvent meritorious and specially needed students. A total of 12394 students—11,285 insolvent meritorious and 1109 specially needed students—have got scholarship worth about Taka 6, 19, 70,000. At the same function, the prime minister also unveiled some development projects including ICT master plan under the National University and put a signature on the list of the development schemes. Education Minister Dr. Dipu Moni spoke as the special guest at the programme with Vice-Chancellor of the National University Prof Dr Mashiur Rahman in the chair. Two Principals, Abu Salek Mohammad Sourov from Selim Sonar Bangla College of Cumilla and Jubaida Ayesha Siddiqa of Rajshahi Government Women College spoke on behalf of the principals at the function. Two scholarship recipients expressed their views as well. A video documentary on the activities on the National University was also screed. Sheikh Hasina said the immediate past caretaker government had arrested her first after announcing emergency on this day (July 16 in 2007). “I was first arrested on this day during the emergency period,” she said. The prime minister said they had given her a proposal of giving a status of a Prime Minister by a military officer named Amin, who was the most powerful at that time. She said she told the army that she didn’t want the status rather wanted election through which the countrymen could choose their representatives. “My father was a President of the country. I was also Prime Minister of it. I have no greed for assets, house and car rather I want to change the people’s fate. I returned to the country not to build my fortune, but to change the countrymen’ fate,” she told the army man who used to come to visit her in the jail. She told that she only wanted election which forced them to give election in 2008. Sheikh Hasina said the country has progressed much due to continuation of democracy and political stability in the country since the Awami League assumed power in 2009. “We’re marching Bangladesh ahead confronting natural and men-made obstacles. Bangladesh has got recognition as a developing country and its journey will start as the developing one in 2026,” she said. The prime minister said today’s Bangladesh is changed one in comparison to 14 and a half years back in terms of overall development including education, health, food security, infrastructure and digital connectivity. “One can easily compare Bangladesh just having a look at 14 years back and seeing enormous development in every sector now,” she said. The prime minister said the BNP-Jamaat alliance had given their last national budget of Taka 61,000 crore only while the Awami League government has given its last budget of Taka 7, 61,785 crore. She said her government has always attached topmost priority on education following the footstep of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as Bangabandhu considered expenses in education as investment. The premier said Bangabandhu had given 21.6 percent allocation in education in the budget while her government has given allocation of Taka 8162 crore in education. She said Bangabandhu had given jobs of 1.65 lakh teachers in primary schools and made 36,000 schools nationalized across the country soon after the independence. Likewise Bangabandhu, she said her government has also given importance on science, technology and vocational education. The premier said her government has established 12 science and technology universities across the country to encourage students to take up science in schools, as they had found fewer students in science when assumed power in 1996. She said the BNP-Jamaat government had stopped the scholarships that her government used to give for taking masters and Ph.D degree abroad. She also said they (BNP-Jamaat) even cancelled the agreement of purchasing 10,000 laptop of Tulip Brand from the Netherlands government for schools as they thought that Sheikh Rehana was the owner of the company despite Tulip is the national flower of the Netherlands. Due to the cancellation, Bangladesh has to pay Tk 60 crore to the Netherlands government after losing a legal battle, she said. The prime minister said her government has ensured congenial and peaceful environment in the educational institutions. During the regime of the BNP-Jamaat alliance government, the educational institutions including the universities have seen the reign of terror. The prime minister said the military dictator Ziaur Rahman diverted the young generation from the path of education to destruction by giving them money and arms.