Teachers hired in undergraduate (Honours) and postgraduate (Masters) programs at private colleges linked to the National University are going to be included in the Monthly Pay Order (MPO) scheme.
The change follows a long wait of 32 years and represents an important shift in support of higher education faculty. The decision was made in a review meeting on Wednesday in the Ministry of Education’s conference room.
The focus was on the "2021 MPO Policy and Manpower Structure for Private Educational Institutions (Schools and Colleges)."
Siddiqur Zobair, Senior Secretary of the Secondary and Higher Education Division, chaired the meeting. Professor Dr. Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar, Education Adviser, attended the session as the chief guest.
Sources report that about 3,500 teachers work in 495 private colleges nationwide without any salary or government allowance. These educators have been unpaid since the National University was founded in 1992.
Md. Zamir Hossain, Vice President of the Bangladesh Private College Honors-Masters Teachers’ Federation, mentioned that adding these teachers to the MPO would need an annual budget of just BDT 111 crore.
Participants in the meeting confirmed that they agreed to start the MPO enrollment for these teachers. A formal proposal will soon be sent to the Ministry of Finance for budget approval.
