Govt decides to re-launch NSP

The government will re-launch the National Service Programme (NSP) from January next for capacity building of 42,500 youths and making them eligible for jobs.
To push the move forward, the Cabinet approved Monday a proposal for extension of the NSP.
"The programme (NSP) will begin from January next. It will continue for next two years. It will be implemented in 17 poverty-ridden upazilas of 17 northern and southern districts," Cabinet Secretary Muhammad Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told the media after the meeting of the Council of the Ministers on the day.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over the meeting at the Cabinet Division at the Bangladesh Secretariat.
The Cabinet Secretary said around 42,500 youths would get three-month training and short-time service under the programme.
He said the NSP was first launched in March 2010 in three districts to provide necessary training and short-time service to educated male and female youths for their capacity building to find jobs. At that time, the programme was implemented in 19 upazilas of Kurigram, Barguna and Gopalganj districts.
Under the programme, a total of 56,801 male and female youths were given training. Out of them, 56,054 got government jobs. Under the NSP, a youth gets Taka 100 daily during training period and Taka 200 during the short-time service.
The second phase of the NSP was implemented in 2011-12 fiscal year in seven districts of Rangpur Division when 14,467 youths were given training.
The third phase will be implemented in 17 poverty-ridden upazilas of 17 districts. The upazilas were selected on the basis of the poverty map of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
The upazilas are Mehendiganj of Barisal, Gosairhat of Shariatpur, Dewanganj of Jamalpur, Nandail of Mymensingh, Kaukhali of Pirojpur, Haimchar of Chandpur, Sherpur Sadar, Shyamnagar of Satkhira, Nalchiti of Jhalkathi, Mohammadpur of Magura, Goalunda of Rajbari, Chitalmari of Bagerhat, Chowhali of Sirajganj, Thanchi of Bandarban, Singda of Natore, Terkhada of Khulna and Monoharganj of Comilla.
Mr Bhuiyan said the cabinet also approved in principle the draft 'Digital University, Bangladesh Act, 2014' aiming to expedite the pace of development through improving the ICT education.  
"It will be a specialised university on information and communication technology (ICT) with an objective to gear up the pace of development through qualitative improvement of the IT education in the country," he said.
He said the draft act proposed for establishing a public  hi-tech park in Gazipur.
He said the cabinet discussed the issue of naming the university, and came to a decision for naming the country's first ever specialised IT university after Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
"The cabinet will complete the procedure in this regard including approval of the Bangabandhu Memorial Trust before placing the draft to the cabinet for final approval," the Cabinet Secretary said.
He said the draft law proposed for an attractive salary structure and allowances to draw brilliant and competent persons at home and abroad for teaching profession and other posts of the university.
The university will have arrangement to provide distant and online education on ICT. Besides, it will have a link with ICT industries.
Two noted persons who are management or technical experts on ICT will be the members of the academic council. The government will implement the project on priority basis.
The cabinet was apprised of the Prime Minister's Malaysia visit from December 2 to December 4 , and participation of the Cultural Affairs Minister in the First Korea-South Asia Culture Ministers' meeting in Seoul, the Republic of Korea on October 17-18, 2014 and the 6th Asia Europe Culture Ministers' meeting on Creative Industries' in the Netherlands on October 19-21, 2014.
talhabinhabib@yahoo.com