Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina recently announced that her government will turn the country into 'Smart Bangladesh' by 2041. She also said the government has fixed four bases -- smart citizens, smart economy, smart government and smart Society -- to make the country 'Smart Bangladesh'.
It needs no emphasizing that unrelenting efforts of the government over the last 7-8 years have successfully reinvigorated the country’s ICT sector. Different initiatives have been implemented by the government’s ICT wing to take the country’s ICT sector to the level of the first world countries. Noticeably the emphasis gained momentum through the Digital Bangladesh initiative. The notion of Digital Bangladesh implies the broad use of computers, and embodies the modern philosophy of effective use of technology in terms of implementing Government’s commitment for development in education, health, and poverty reduction. While there are many long-term challenges in upgrading the digital performance of Bangladesh, especially in the areas of spending on research and development and increasing the availability of skilled professionals in science and technology, Bangladesh has made tremendous strides in the area of ICT.
Bangladesh has made
tremendous strides
in the area of ICT
In order to fuel our journey towards being a middle-income nation, it is important for us to integrate efforts in information and communications technology. Over the last four years, we have witnessed the burgeoning of the ICT sector in the country. From the adoption of computers in government offices for record-keeping to the increased use of credit and debit cards throughout shops and merchants, the use of ICT is everywhere. We have introduced newer and efficient ways for our foreign workers to send remittance back to their homeland. There is no doubt that these initiatives are impressive but compared to most industrialised nations of the world we are still in the early stages, and there is still a lot to be done to materialize the dream of a Digital Bangladesh.
However, it is good to note the government is running on the right track mapping out a number of ongoing projects which will further bolster our ICT sector. Reportedly, the government is working to integrate efficient technologies to commercialise new products, protect intellectual property rights, support young innovators, and create a platform to identify, nurture, and develop new ICT concepts. Hence, it can be said that the hope for digital Bangladesh has become just a matter of time. Effective utilization of ICT is not only the key step for successful implementation of Smart Bangladesh vision but also an important precondition for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
