Hi-Tech parks: Mission to realise a dream

Paper making technology invented by the Chinese two thousand years ago reached the shores of Europe after a long period of one thousand years via the Islamic world. Compared to the laidback environment of that era, new technologies invented in, say, Silicon Valley in America now travels at supersonic speed in what is called global village. The latest of these genres - digital technology - is moving faster than any other innovative technology in the human history. It has indeed taken the world by storm. Within a short period of two decades or so it has transformed how people communicate, learn, travel and work.
Digital technologies are electronic tools, systems, devices and resources that generate, store or process data. These include multimedia, mobile phone, digital images, digital video, video game, web pages and websites, social media, data and databases, digital audio, such as MP3 and electronic books.
Realising the importance of digital technology, the Government has rightly laid emphasis on turning the country into what it calls digital Bangladesh. Despite the scepticism initially expressed by a section of the country's political divide, digitalisation process is rapidly transforming the country's technological landscape.
Syed Amdadul Huq, a Joint Secretary to the Government of Bangladesh in the Bangladesh Post and Telecommunication Division, looks at the transformation in all its colourful dimensions in a recently published book with the title "Digital Bangladesh - A dream come true".
In the sphere of communications he delineated how quickly the digital mobile technology has overwhelmed the country's wireless communication system throttling, in the process, land lined phones. The author has provided a recipe for survival of the remaining land phones including the government held telephone company. He also devoted a chapter "5-G - A Dream Technology on the Horizon" to underscore its likely impacts on the country's communication system.
Amdadul Huq has explored the potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the education sector by creating an ICT-based interactive teaching and learning process for dissemination of knowledge and practices in the schools especially at the primary level involving 20 million students, 3,20,000 teachers and over 78,000 educational institutions.
One chapter of the book under the caption 'Bangladesh: A globally trusted outsourcing destination' traces Bangladesh's achievement to attract ICT-related business through its huge pool of ICT professionals, government's supportive policies and nation-wide connectivity. The author surmises that our competitive advantage has earned global recognition as a potential destination for outsourcing and outlines the opportunity for carving out a significant niche in this fast growing market.
Amdadul Huq went deep into other critical areas to explore the huge potentials of ICT as a catalyst to attain the sustainable development goals, involving young generation in innovative practices, climate change management and good governance. E-Government, the author maintains, supports good governance through integration of ICT in Government operation to facilitate speedy transparent, accountable, efficient and effective interaction with the public, citizens, business and other government's agencies.
Another crucial area for application of digital technology is known variously as e-commerce, internet economy, e-business, digital economy and new economy. The onset of e-commerce, the author suggests, will revolutionise the economic growth, provide easy access to markets and trade information, and facilitate fast business growth, increased flexibility of trade policies, simplifying the business process, maximising the sales through economising the promotion and business costs.
One chapter is devoted to a discussion of the emergence of science parks popularly known as Technology or Hi-Tech Park to facilitate propagation of digital technology. These are mainly tenant-based centres popular to mainly young people for early stage ventures and startups. The Government of Bangladesh have taken ambitious projects to set up Hi-Tech parks throughout the country under the banner of High-Tech Park Authority established in 2010 to carry forward its mission of realising its dream to transform Bangladesh into a truly Digital Bangladesh.

Syed Ashraf Ali is a former Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank.
[email protected]

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Digital Bangladesh — A dream come true
by Syed Amdadul Huq
Published by the author
Price Tk 200 US$ 5