Improve living standards of the marginalised

Without improving the living standards of marginalised people, the government’s goal of achieving higher GDP growth rate will not be sustainable, lawmaker Shirin Akhter said at a seminar yesterday.

“We [government] intended to accelerate our GDP growth rate, but remote areas of this country are still in darkness,” she said.

The general secretary of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) was speaking as the chief guest at a seminar on “Success stories of reach up project: Together with government primary schools “at a convention centre in Gulshan.

NETZ Partnership for Development and Justice, a German-Bangladeshi charitable and independent organisation, arranged it.

Terming education a key changer of people’s life, Shirin said the government should enhance its monitoring to upgrade primary education in the country as it is globally regarded as the foundation level of education.

“Their [primary students] curriculum should be modified,” she said, adding that students must be encouraged to read books besides textbooks.

She also stressed on undertaking awareness-raising programmes geared towards primary students and their guardians for a discrimination-free society.  

Chairing the seminar, Rasheda K Choudhury, executive director of Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE), said providing basic education to all citizens is the state’s duty and NGOs can assist the government in developing relevant policies.

“Children from marginalised families  want to get educated too,” she said.

So the government should increase facilities for these disadvantaged students, she added.

Rasheda urged the government to nationally declare a special week every year -- dedicating it for reading books on science and literature, among others.

NETZ Consultant Mohammad Golam Nabi shared stories of primary schools which have been successful in drawing a huge number of bright students by increasing facilities including mid-day meal, adequate classrooms, playground and cultural activities.

Among others, NETZ Country Director Habibur Rahman Chowdhury and Porgramme Manager Manjusree Mitra spoke at the seminar.