Nahid for expansion of madrasah education

DHAKA: – Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid yesterday said the government attaches priority to expansion of madrasah education maintaining its quality for creating skilled workforce, reports BSS.

“We have focused on institutional development in the madrasah education sector to ensure access of students to job markets,” he told a rally of madrasah teachers and employees at the Suhrawardy Udyan here.

Bangladesh Jamiatul Modaresin organized the rally for nationalization of all madrasahs. Several thousand madrasah teachers and employees across the country attended the rally.

Home Minister Asaduzzamnan Khan Kamal, Prime Minister’s Private Sector Development Affairs Advisor Salman F Rahman, Secretary of Madrasah and Technical Education Division Md Alamgir and teachers, among others, addressed the rally with President of Bangladesh Jamiatul Modaresin Alhaj AMM Bahauddin in the chair.

Nahid said good progress has been made to set up another Islamic University as the government has allocated 30 acres of land and Taka 413 crore for it.

He said there was little progress in the madarasa education sector during the previous government, adding, “We have constructed 1,325 new buildings of madrasahs over the past nine years and we are planning to construct 2000 new buildings aiming to expand madrasah education.”

The minister said initiatives have already been taken to modernize madrasa education bringing qualitative changes in the education system to develop competent manpower.

“We have modernized madrasah education incorporating science and information technology (IT),” he added.

Referring to different initiatives for the development of madrasah education, Nahid said 35 model madrasahs have been set up and honours courses introduced at 51 madrasahs.

The home minister said, “Those who uphold real spirit of Islam and would not be involved in militancy… It is not true that madrasahs are breeding grounds of militants.”

“If we properly provide modern opportunity for education for the madrasah students, they will be worthy citizens in the country,” he added.

A vested quarter is misguiding the students of general education sector and rich families to make them militants, Kamal said and urged the madrasah teachers to explain real essence of Islam for rooting out militancy from the country.