Criticising the provision of heading the governing bodies of educational institutions by the parliament members in their constituencies, they said the trend has led to the politicisation of those bodies and deterioration of management quality of educational institutions.

The Nagorik Committee 2006 organised the fifth expert group consultation meeting on 'Vision 2021 for Bangladesh: Goal 5: To have a skilled and a creative workforce' at Cirdap auditorium in Dhaka. Prof Anisuzzaman and Muhammad Zafar Iqbal jointly chaired the meeting.

It is very unfortunate that the political parties are now using students and their organisations to serve their political purposes, Prof Zafar Iqbal said, adding that it has led to a culture of collecting tolls from development works of educational institutions.

Prof Anissuzzaman said too much emphasis on memorisation is creating serious problem and ultimately hampering the achievement of the goal of education.

Speaking at the meeting, Prof Dr M Asaduzzaman, chairman of University Grants Commission (UGC), identified lack of commitment as a reason for degradation in education quality.

When the main objective is to score marks and achieving degrees, being an educated person gets less priority, he said, adding that it is very unfortunate that the teachers are not properly discharging their duties.

Stressing the need for improving the quality of primary education, the UGC chairman said it is the basic foundation to prepare skilled human resources.

Prof Shaheda Obaid, former chairperson of Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Dhaka, said the governing body and management of the educational institutions are highly politicised and it is one of the main causes of poor quality education in the country.

"It is very unfortunate that a member of parliament now heads 40 to 50 educational institutions. As a result, recruitment of teachers and admission of students are being done on political considerations," she said.

Blaming lack of political commitment for the situation, Shaheda Obaid said the present system is creating 'mastans' instead of educating the students.

Around Tk 35 crore was spent to improve the efficiency of English language teachers under a programme of Dhaka Education Board, she said.

Pointing to the misuse of funds and poor quality of the training programme, she said, "I doubt whether efficiency of 35 teachers was improved with the Tk 35 crore fund."

Emphasising the need for concentrating more on creativity, Prof Hafiz GA Siddiqi, vice-chancellor of North South University, said academic curriculum should be prepared in a way that would not only serve the purpose at home but also be acceptable abroad.

Dr Siddiqur Rahman of Dhaka University said the education system should be modified so as to cover the underprivileged too.

Kazi Rafiqul Alam, Executive Director of Dhaka Ahsania Mission, observed lack of accountability as a reason for creating a mess in the education sector.

'Buying and selling' of certificates under the National University is going on, which is very unfortunate, he said, adding that things will not change without ensuring accountability.

It is not possible to control the activities in some 78,000 primary and 24,000 secondary schools in the country from Dhaka, said Dr Mahmudul Alam of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.

Local government bodies should be given some responsibilities in running these institutions, he said.

D. Net Executive Director Ananya Raihan suggested utilisation of creative initiatives in reducing poverty.

Earlier, making a presentation on 'Vision 2021 for Bangladesh: Goal 5: To have a skilled and a creative workforce,' Debapriya Bhattacharya, executive director of CPD, stressed the need for universal access to education up to the secondary level.

A decent primary and secondary education should be given to every child irrespective of his or her family income level, gender, religion, ethnicity or disabilities, he said.

He suggested recruitment of top university graduates at the primary and secondary schools by offering them highest paid entry-level jobs.

"It is necessary to keep the students as well as teachers free from party politics to develop an internationally competitive education system by 2021," he said, adding that political parties should immediately cease their sponsorship for student politics.

There is a need for an education system where a set of core knowledge and competencies are acquired by all students at the primary and secondary level, along with choices for additional and complementary learning options, Debapriya mentioned.

Prof Rehman Sobhan, convener of the Nagorik Committee 2006, and M Syeduzzaman, former finance minister, were also present at the consultation.