Muhith urges banks to spend more on education from CSR funds

Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Thursday urged the country's banking sector to spend more from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds on the education sector, reports UNB.
Appreciating Shahjalal Islami Bank (SJIBL) and Dutch-Bangla Bank for  their CSR contributions to the education sector, the Finance Minister said these two banks believe that education has been the most contributory element to human development.

"The best investment of a country is in the education sector as it plays the most significant role in building a nation," he told a function arranged marking the distribution of scholarships by the SJIBL at the city's Officers Club.
At the function, some 500 students from across the country received scholarships from the SJIBL.
Held with SJIBL chairman AK Azad in the chair, the function was also addressed by Bangladesh Bank deputy governor SK Sur Chowdhury and Pubali Bank chairman Hafiz Ahmed Majumder.
Referring to the contribution of Muslim philanthropist Hazi Mohammad Mohsin in spreading education in this subcontinent, the Finance Minister said Mohsin had formed an education endowment fund in 1812 through his all wealth before the current concept of CSR came into being.
He said the country's rich people have the responsibility to play a role in creating opportunities of having education for those who do not have the access to it as education can help people to become good human beings.
Muhith also appreciated the Bangladesh Bank governor for his campaign to encourage banks to spend more on their CSR activities.
Sur Chowdhury urged the SJIBL to increase the CSR activities in the education sector saying that the central bank has made it mandatory for all banks to spend at least 40 percent of the CSR fund on the education sector.
SJIBL chairman AK Azad appreciated the Finance Minister for his dynamic role in putting the country's economy on a strong footing.
Describing his experience of closely working with the Finance Minister, Azad, also a former FBCCI president, said Muhith takes many good steps for the development of the economy and banking sector, but he cannot implement those due to "political interference".
He also took a swipe at the critics of the Finance Minister saying those who do not know him, do not obey him. "But those who know him, they obey him… Muhith is a unique character of honesty," he said.
Azad, also the chairman of Hamim Group, urged the Finance Minister to take steps to streamline the banking sector so that the banks could reduce their rate of interest.
FE Report Adds: SJIBL chairman AK Azad in his speech urged the government to remove the banking sector's mismanagement as it is impeding interest-rate reduction as well as investment in the country.
"There is somewhat mismanagement in the country's banking sector. It is barring to lessen the interest rate to single digit. The finance minister is trying to this effect but cannot succeed due to so far political interference," Mr Azad, also former FBCCI president, said.
Each of the 300 SSC-passed students received onetime Tk 20,000 and rest of the HSC-passed students each got Tk 25,000; of them, 120 at the SSC level and 80 at the HSC level are female students, a bank official said.
Two of the awardees at the ceremony described how much they had to struggle to come to their current level of education by overcoming severe economic hardships. SJIBL scholarship would considerably help them move forward, they said, and thanked the bank for its generous programme.
At his speech, Mr Azad vowed to raise the bulk of the scholarship in the coming year.
He further said that if the mismanagement in the banking was removed, it would be possible to bring the lending rate down to the single digit, increasing investment, employment and economic growth in the country.
To do so, Mr Azad opined for stiff action from the finance minster, if necessary.