Dhaka:The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) has approved the Primary Education Development Programme-5 (PEDP-5), a significant Tk 41,090.48 crore initiative aimed at enhancing the quality of primary education. The programme will focus on infrastructure development, teacher training, digital learning, and student welfare programmes.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, State Minister for Planning Md. Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki emphasized the urgent need for implementing the project, which includes the government's major flagship programmes for the primary education sector. The project aims to bring together several government initiatives under a comprehensive framework.
The approval came with specific observations and instructions from the government, which include rationalizing consultancy expenditure, clarifying training arrangements, and transferring revenue-related activities to the revenue budget within two years. The project underwent multiple rounds of scrutiny by the Planning Commission, which addressed concerns over consultancy costs and allocations under various components.
The programme will cover diverse activities such as establishing new primary schools, renovating existing facilities, and providing teacher training and digital classrooms. It also includes the distribution of educational materials and components like "One Teacher, One Tab" and multimedia classrooms. Additionally, the programme will offer school uniforms, shoes, educational materials, mid-day meals, and extracurricular activities to primary school students.
Teacher training is a key focus, with plans to utilize existing public infrastructure and online platforms to expedite the training of approximately 350,000 teachers. The government aims to enhance the quality of classroom education while ensuring appropriate training manuals and identifying beneficiaries.
The project name may be reconsidered to reflect its comprehensive nature, and authorities have been instructed to address all observations and resubmit the revised Development Project Proposal (DPP) within two weeks. The government anticipates significant improvements in the primary education system through this initiative.
In other developments, four projects were sent back for further review during the ECNEC meeting. These include projects related to road repairs, local economic development, university establishment, and water security. The authorities have been tasked with conducting additional assessments and resubmitting the proposals.
Source Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha