Md Bayazid Khan
People are the real wealth of nations.
Workforce is the key to economic development of a country. Sectors like
agriculture, industry, tourism, IT, telecom, trade & commerce, communication
badly need workforces for its expansion and development that tend to develop
economy significantly. But rapid and sustainable economic development of a nation mostly depends
on its productive workforces. More people’s involvement in work definitely
keeps economic activities of the country moving by earning, saving and paying
taxes. When countries have a greater share of people who can work, save, and
pay taxes, they have the potential to transform their economies by stepping up
growth and development. However, to utilize this opportunity, countries need to
create not only more jobs but also better jobs ensuring higher wages and
productivity.
Workforces’ existences in the form of
unemployment, disguised unemployment and under employment are equally
detrimental to sustainable economic development. Unemployment in
any form is a drag on an economy and society. It undercuts productivity,
spending and investment that may stunt national growth. It contributes to
inequality and spurs social tension.
Without an
income, millions of young people find themselves living in poverty. Initial
low-paying jobs and delayed entry into the workforce limit lifetime earning
potential. The inability to find gainful employment limits young people’s
income and skill development. Unemployment at an early age can negatively
affect future earnings. Jobless
young people experience vulnerability to future or long-term unemployment, wage
scarring and foregone earnings, wasted capacity, skills stagnation, and short
and long-term detriment to physical or emotional health. On the contrary, greater
number of aging population than young people mean burden of the economy as well
as less productivity in all indicators of economic growth. An aging population
needs to be supported that have fewer employment opportunities. With the rise in the aging population, a
country will have to focus more on pension scheme, social security network
scheme, health protecting scheme etc. Moreover, a country faces monetary losses
from foregone tax revenue and payouts of benefits because of aging people.
Economic growth is undermined by lost productivity of its working age
population. Therefore, it is inevitable for the government of a country to
utilize its entire youth workforces in the process of economic development.
According
to estimates by the International Labor Organization, the world labor force
currently numbers approximately 3 billion people, out of whom 23 to 30% are
underemployed and about 140 million are fully unemployed. The severity and
consistently high levels of youth unemployment worldwide are of special
concern. The ILO estimates that there are about 60 million young people between
the ages of 15 and 24 who are presently in search of work but cannot find it. Bangladesh has
a huge young and productive workforce that will continue to increase until 2030
and can contribute to dramatic socio-economic development.
A number of factors make the jobs challenge
more acute among youth. Constraints to youth employment may be borne on the
individual level along with result from market or government failure.
Inadequate skills and mismatches between education and skills have emerged as
chief concerns. In Bangladesh, constraints to youth employment may be
identified as workforce population have a lack of either education or
vocational/technical training or necessary skills, shrunk labor market and
inadequate job opportunities.
Youth workforce
is the key to economic development of a country. Bangladesh has 19 percent of
its population between 15 and 24 years, who hold immense potentials. To ensure
their involvement as productive workforces the country needs to diversify its
economy. Presently, employment in Bangladesh is concentrated mostly in
agriculture, readymade garments and informal sector. In the informal sector,
the payments that employees get are not enough to maintain a good living. Apart
from that workforces involved in informal sector are victimizing of
underemployment too. There are huge potentials in IT, banking, telecom, trade
& commerce, tourism and power & energy sectors. But the country needs
to have policies of promoting skill-based education to meet the market demand
in the said sectors for accommodating youth workforces. Workforces with highest
degree in general education can never satisfy employers of the said sectors to
be employed them. Besides attaining requisite skills and qualifications by
young workforces, foreign investments might be encouraged in these sectors
rather than investing in readymade garments and other informal sectors.
Moreover, youths have to be given incentives for entrepreneurship.
Therefore, action-oriented policies for
creating quality jobs needed to utilize young workforces’ productivity.
According to the UNDP report, Bangladesh needs to create 25 million jobs
between 2016 and 2030, which means 16 lakh new jobs should be available every
year. To stimulate the job market, the government needs to improve the
business environment to encourage new businesses as well as foreign
investments. On the other hand, skill based education policy might be chalked
out and henceforth curriculum in all three tiers of education might be revised.
Our educationists those are responsible for designing curriculum forgot their
weaknesses in some subjects when they were student. They might remember that a
student can never strong in all subjects. Rather they should have the provision
of selecting the area/wing of education that they feel comfort at the outset of
secondary level. There could be different options for students at grade six
like IT, telecom, energy, science, banking, trade & commerce, tourism, art
& craft, sports, history (Bangladesh & International) etc. Subjects like
Bangla, English, General Mathematics (arithmetic and simple geometry), Religion
& Moral Education, General Science and History & culture of Bangladesh
might be kept compulsory for all wings. There might have specialized subjects
(maximum four) for respective wings/areas of education. Is it rational for all
students at secondary level to learn calculus, trigonometry etc.? Rather they
should learn to solve arithmetical and simple geometrical problems which are
very much relevant to real life activities. In addition, educational
institutions (school, college, madrasah, university) should be made as learning
factories - the source of attaining skill based education. There should be the
variation of learning in each wings of education at educational institutions like
learning by doing (laboratories, workshops), learning from attachment/placement
(field trip), theoretical learning (classroom) so that process of learning
become comfortable and enjoyable to students. Moreover, this will help students
to attain skill based education that will pave the way for getting jobs even
they leave education at any tier. The above mentioned policy of education may
compel young students to concentrate more on learning as well as develop them
as skilled workforces rather protecting them to deviate from right track in
life.
The writer is working
for primary education sector in Bangladesh.