Facing the challenges of the 4IR

The world economy is undergoing a paradigm shift with the evolution of advanced technologies such as industrial robot, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, internet of things (IoT), blockchain and data science.

Traditional jobs will eventually become obsolete and the demand for labour in high-skilled jobs is increasing. According to an Oxford Economics study, around 20 million manufacturing jobs are going to be replaced by robots by 2030. Besides, according to McKinsey, around 800 million people are going to lose their jobs due to the use of robotics and AI in the industrial sector.

This unprecedented growth in digitisation in business processes will not only threaten the livelihood of low-skilled people but will also further fuel inequality in society. Being a part of world economy, Bangladesh is now gradually experiencing the effects of the wave of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). But building an efficient labour force remains the biggest challenge for Bangladesh due to our technological incompetence.

Our backdated education system needs to go through a reformation so that enough awareness is created about the global skills in demand and so that our labour force is trained to excel in IT and interpersonal skills. Only then will we be adequately equipped to face the effects of the 4IR.