Thrust on skills dev to face 4IR

Prime Minister's Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman Fazlur Rahman on Saturday said concerted efforts are needed to develop skilled human resources in the country to face the challenges of the 4th industrial revolution (4IR), reports BSS.

"We'll have to work more for skills development to face the challenges of the 4th industrial revolution," he said, addressing as chief guest the inaugural session of a workshop titled "The Role of Media in Promoting SME Development and Sustainability" at the office of the Economic Reporters' Forum (ERF) in the city.

The adviser termed the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as the foundation of any economy and underscored the need for putting more emphasis on flourishing of the country's SME sector.

Industries Secretary Md Abdul Halim, Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) Chairman Md Mostaque Hassan and First Secretary, Team Leader, Food Security, Nutrition and Sustainable Development of the Delegation of the EU to Bangladesh Manfred Fernholz spoke at the function as special guests with ERF President Saiful Islam Dilal in the chair. ERF General Secretary SM Rashedul Islam also spoke.

Team Leader, Technical Assistance to BSCIC Ali Sabet made a power-point presentation on the topic.

The workshop was organized by the Poverty Reduct-ion through Inclusive and Sustainable Markets (PRIS-M) project funded by EU.

Salman said in line with the visions and directives from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, BSCIC has been strengthened and reorganised over the years. He hinted that one-stop service would be incorporated in the operations of the corporation.

Turning to the good news of moving eight notches up by Bangladesh in the recent ease of doing business index revealed by the World Bank, he said although there has been advancement, but the country is still lagging behind in the ease of doing business index and competitive index.

"We'll definitely improve further as there has been some reforms……we'll improve in all the indexes in the coming days and we hope to come to the double digit in the ease of doing business index by 2021, Insha Allah," he said.