The University Grants Commission (UGC) is in the process of developing a clear and stringent guideline to regulate the establishment of branch campuses of foreign universities in Bangladesh, aiming to ensure quality higher education while preventing its commercialisation, reports UNB.
According to UGC member and head of the sub-committee on private universities, Professor Dr Mohammad Anwar Hossain, a high-powered committee has been tasked with drafting the policy.
The committee comprises prominent academics from leading public and private universities, including the University of Dhaka, BUET, North South University, and Jahangirnagar University.
The Vice-Chancellor (VC) of BUET is leading the main committee, while Dr Hossain is leading a key sub-committee within the group.
In an interview, Dr Hossain said, "We are assessing how beneficial the foreign university campuses will be for Bangladesh. A high-powered committee, consisting of experienced professors, is preparing a policy guideline. Once the policy is finalised, we will be able to decide on the approval of the campuses."
He explained that the UGC has a generally positive stance towards the foreign university campuses, but it still remains cautious.
"We are closely examining whether students' interest would be hampered, or if the public and private universities would come under undue pressure. The private universities have reached a certain standard. However, when we consider the living standards, salary structures, and research facilities of the public university teachers, the picture is less satisfactory. If the foreign universities begin operating here, our educators might face even more strain."
The UGC intends to finalise the policy only after comprehensive review and national interest assessments. "If the move proves to be beneficial for the country, we will form the policy accordingly," Dr Hossain said.
Sources at the UGC said the commission is currently revising the Regulations for the Operation of Foreign University Branch or Study Centres 2014 due to its existing ambiguities and limitations.
The new draft policy proposes allowing only the establishment of full-fledged branch campuses, explicitly excluding the operation of study centres.
The policy outlines several mandatory conditions for the foreign universities wishing to establish branch campuses in Bangladesh. These include having a minimum of 25,000 square feet of campus space, employing full-time academic staff, maintaining a fixed deposit of Tk 50 million, and paying a non-refundable application fee of Tk 1.0 million.
The commission emphasises that the core objective of this policy is to ensure proper standards in higher education and to avoid commercial exploitation of the education sector.
UCSI University of Malaysia has become the first foreign university to receive approval from both the UGC and the Ministry of Education to establish a branch campus. The university has already started academic activities in Dhaka.
The UGC officials said future approvals would be granted only after finalisation of the new policy framework that would be strictly applied in order to ensure the presence of recognised and high-quality foreign institutions in the country.
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