Prime Minister Dines with Students, to Give Awards Tomorrow
Collected Photo
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman have had lunch with school students today (Sunday) to encourage their innovations. He will award them tomorrow (Monday). These young innovators have been selected through a long process from across the country and are currently busy at the China-Bangladesh Friendship Conference Centre in Dhaka.
At the conference centre, some students are developing low-cost irrigation systems, while others are working on flood early warning systems, plastic waste recycling, or technology-based solutions to reduce farmers' production costs.
The Prime Minister visited the conference centre today (Sunday) during a break in the parliamentary session to observe their preparations. He joined the students from various educational institutions for lunch. He urged them to participate in sports and creative activities alongside their studies, and advised them to grow into capable, skilled, and responsible citizens.
To showcase these young scientists' innovative ideas at the national level, the "Startup, Science Project and Innovation Idea Showcasing Program" will be held tomorrow (Monday) at the China-Bangladesh Friendship Conference Centre in Dhaka. Simultaneously, a tree-planting program will begin in 29,621 educational institutions across the country. The program, organized by the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) under the Ministry of Education, has the theme: "A nation of intellect, science, enterprise, and innovation—Bangladesh first."
The Ministry of Education said this initiative is being organized under the Educational Excellence Support Scheme to develop students' analytical thinking, creativity, and innovative skills. The competition began on 12 June at the education offices of 521 upazilas and metropolitan areas across the country. A total of 27,204 students in 8,029 teams, along with 16,058 teachers, participated. Each team consisted of three students and two teachers.
Selection Process
A total of 546 teams selected from the upazila level showcased their projects at the district level on 14 June. From there, the top 100 teams were selected to present their innovative projects today at the national-level final round.
After the competition, the top 10 teams will be awarded trophies. Additionally, teachers will receive the "Meritorious Teacher Award for Good Education" with a certificate and Tk 30,000, while students will receive the "Innovative Meritorious Student Award" with a certificate and Tk 20,000.
Tree-Planting Initiative
On the same day, under the World Bank-funded "Learning Acceleration in Secondary Education (LASE)" project, a tree-planting program will begin simultaneously in 29,621 educational institutions across the country. The "One Child, One Tree" program aims to enhance students' climate awareness while strengthening greenery on school campuses.
This initiative is being implemented by the Ministry of Education as part of the BNP's election manifesto commitment to plant 25 crore trees over five years. Under the program, each educational institution will receive a grant of Tk 5,000 per year for climate awareness activities. In the first phase, one fruit tree, one timber tree, and one medicinal tree will be planted in each institution. The target is to plant a total of 5 crore trees in educational institutions over the next five years.
Tomorrow's Program
Prime Minister Tarek Rahman will inaugurate the national-level event tomorrow. He will distribute prizes to the winners at noon and also inaugurate the tree-planting program. The event will be broadcast live on large screens at all educational institutions across the country.
