PM pledges to provide edn for all

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has pledged to provide education for all -- the key to achieving the overarching vision of inclusive development in the light of sustainable development goals, reports bdnews24.com.

"We foresee a future where women and men work hand in hand for achieving human development," Hasina said in her keynote speech on Tuesday to the Women's Forum, one of the four forums organised as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London.

The Women's Forum reflected on some of the global challenges still faced by women, as part of a wider commitment to "leave no one behind" in the Commonwealth journey to achieving gender equality by 2030.

Hasina shared with global leaders Bangladesh's priority and commitment to ensure 12 years of quality education for girls and boys by 2030.

"We want to build a future where world peace and women empowerment remains the cornerstone to create a society free from poverty, discrimination and conflict," she said.

"Our national plans and policies including the seventh five-year plan are geared towards that."

The economic and political transformation of women is vividly evident in rural Bangladesh, Hasina said citing data from Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

As many as 20 million women are engaged in agriculture, industry and services sectors, she said. Eighty per cent of about 4.5 million garment workers are women in a sector that accounts for 82 per cent of exports.

The government has offered special facilities for women entrepreneurs and they receive collateral-free bank loans with only 5 per cent service charge. Women are entitled to 10 per cent of the SME fund and 10 per cent industrial plots, Hasina said.