For the leaders of tomorrow

MOHUA MOULI

One of the pioneering youth organisations in the country, Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC) hosted their first edutainment event titled "Youth Carnival 2019". The two-day long carnival took place on December 27-28, 2019 at the Government College of Physical Education in Mohammadpur.

The event aimed to engage the youth in topics on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through various panels, workshops and sessions, hosted by prominent young leaders of Bangladesh. BYLC also celebrated its 10 years through this event.

During the opening ceremony, chief guest Mohammad Akhtar Hossain, Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Sports, spoke about the importance of events like the Youth Carnival. Other speakers during the ceremony included Akhter Matin Chaudhury, BYLC Governing Board Chairperson and Sudipto Mukherjee, Country Director, UNDP.

Ejaj Ahmad, Founder and President BYLC who was also present during the opening ceremony, said, "The new direction of leadership is not person centred. Leadership is not about having a title or position. At BYLC, we focus on putting the work at the centre. The person who does the work practices leadership."

Over 5000 unique young participants registered for the event, which was open for anyone between the ages of 15 and 30. During the Carnival, 50 youth-related organisations took part by setting up stalls around the premise. The field was fractioned into various art and photography exhibitions on both days.

Each day included a number of plenary sessions with various renowned professionals. One panel was titled "Preparing for the future: The must-have skills for the 21st century workplace", during which Zara Mahbub, Country Director & CEO, Kazi IT Center Ltd, said, "Bangladesh is very involved in the global digital transformation process. All you need is the willingness to change your attitude and work on your continuous development. Those of us who are part of the industry will help you achieve the rest."

Other panel topics included "Stories of hope and action", "Standing up for what is right: Fighting violence against women and children", "Active citizenship: The power of leading without a title", and "Bangabandhu's Leadership: Lessons for today's youth".

The carnival also included multiple workshops and fireside chats with celebrated individuals like Ayman Sadiq, Founder and CEO, 10 Minute School; Sonia Bashir Kabir, Founder and Chairman SBK Tech Ventures & SBK Foundation, and former Managing Director of Microsoft Bangladesh; Ilias Kanchan, film actor and activist; Adnan MS Fakir, Founder, Finding Bangladesh; and Tarana Halim, former State Minister of Information.

Banasree Mitra Neogi, Gender Advisor, Manusher Jonno Foundation, talked about the realities of gender equality issues in the panel, "Making gender equality a reality". She said, "In theory, gender equality is very simple. This can be achieved if we change our mentality and attitude. But in practice, it is very difficult."

On both days, the event ended with special musical performances by renowned musicians including Elita Karim, Arnob and Friends, Artcell, Chitropot, AvoidRafa, and Revolutus.

The event was supported by Manusher Jonno Foundation and UK Aid, with public sector partners NGO Affairs Bureau and Ministry of Youth and Sports.  

EDU organises industry visit to BSRM

East Delta University's (EDU) Center for Professional Development and Change (CPDC) is organises special programmes for those working in the industry to fill the skills gap in Chattogram.

As part of the Advanced Certificate in Human Resource Management (ACHRM), participants went on an industrial visit to BSRM's factory and office in the Faujdarhat area recently.

Sayeed Al Noman, founder Vice Chairman of EDU, said that HRM is an essential sector in the corporate world. Industrial efficiency is mandatory in achieving the desired goals in this sector. The purpose of the ACHRM course is to improve the skills of human resources professionals.

The industrial visits were led by Hasanul Banna, Assistant Registrar of EDU. EDU is conducting industrial visits for helping students' careers in various commercial establishments.

During the visit, BSRM Talent Accusation Chief Md Mamunur Rahman, Support Function Chief Mahbubul Alam Chowdhury and Senior Executive of the Human Resources Department Morsell Anwar discussed with the participants about the labour force, employee benefits, trade union, human resources and business strategy. 

GUB organises int'l conference titled Sustainable Technologies for Industry 4.0

A two-day international conference titled Sustainable Technologies for Industry 4.0 (STI 2019) was organised by Green University of Bangladesh (GUB) in Purbachal American City on December 24-25, 2019.

University Grants Commission (UGC) member Prof. Dr. Md. Sazzad Hossain inaugurated the programme as chief guest while GUB VC Prof. Dr. Md. Golam Samdani Fakir and Pro-VC Prof. Dr. Md. Abdur Razzaque were present as patron and general chair of the conference respectively.

Prof. Dr. Muhammad H Rashid, IEEE Fellow, Electrical and Computer Engineering at University of West Florida, USA; Sajal K Das, Professor, and Daniel St Clair Endowed Chair, Department of Computer Science at Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA; and Dr. Celia Shahnaz, Chair, IEEE BDS, also spoke among others at the event.

There different tasks included in the mega conference—Intelligent Computing, Network and Security Systems, Electronics, Power and Communication Systems and Textile Engineering. Over 200 papers were submitted by the students and teachers of EEE, computer science and engineering and textile engineering departments of different universities to present at the conference. Accepted and presented papers will be published in the IEEE Explore Digital Library. 

AAA awards for contributions towards growth of Bangladesh

American Alumni Association (AAA) recognised seven individuals for their contributions towards growth of Bangladesh with a clear influence of an American education. Earl R Miller, US Ambassador to Bangladesh; Salman F Rahman MP, Private Sector Development Adviser, Prime Minister's Office; Gowher Rizvi, International Affairs' Adviser, Prime Minister's Office; Dr. Mashiur Rahman, Economic Affairs Advisor, Prime Minister's Office & Co-Chair, AAA; and Tipu Munshi MP, Minister of Commerce, were present as respected dignitaries.

Maimuna N Ahmed, Founder & CEO, Teach for Bangladesh was awarded for Education; Dr. Craig Meisner PhD, Senior Technical Advisor, Food and Agriculture Organization awarded for service to society; Maliha Quadir, Founder, Shohoz awarded for business innovation; Dr. Kazi Khaleed Ashraf PhD, Architect, awarded for arts, culture & sports. Dr. Mohammad Fouzul Kabir Khan PhD, civil servant and Professor, Boston University awarded for public affairs; Dr. Prof. Yasmeen Haque PhD, Professor, University of Washington awarded for science and technology; Mohammad Matiul Islam, civil servant and entrepreneur awarded Lifetime Achievement Award. Nusrat Feroz Aman, President, AAA welcomed all the members and respected dignitaries.