Third Anniversary Special : Winds of Change

http://thedailystar.net/campus/2009/08/05/camspotlight_power.htm

Photo: Md Akhlas Uddin

ONE of the major drawbacks that has been holding us back as a nation is our inability to think on a collective scale; most of us tend to be self-centred, if not selfish, and fail to understand the power of WE and concentrate in our personal gains instead. All the problems, it seems, have the root in the mindset of ours, which, I believe, is desperately in need of a change.

Corruption, one of the most talked about problems on talk shows, newspaper articles and in high profile seminars, can hardly be solved with new laws and drastic actions unless we are able to come out of the box of ME. Those of us in power, the power to make important decisions on a national, or even a smaller scale, tend to think of our personal benefits that can be derived while making those decisions. We tend to assign the contract of making a bridge or a road not to the lowest bidder or one who can assure the best quality, as it ideally should have been, but to someone who has taken advantage of our low morale and has bribed us into believing that he would be the best person for the job. Little do we understand that in doing so, often enough, we bring about our own doom, with underquality constructions often resulting into dire consequences that can hardly be prevented.

In the job market, nepotism seems to be prevalent as an overwhelming number of employers seem to think that their shalas and bhaginas are more aptly fitted for a certain job compared to someone who truly has the merits and the required skills for the job. In hiring someone less able, the organization loses the brightest of minds who had a higher probability of performing better and thus taking it forward. Here too, ME seems to be the predominant factor.

Many streets in Dhaka, and in other parts of the country are made dirty mostly by its local inhabitants rather than from outsiders. If we cannot keep the streets in front of our homes clean, how can we really expect the city to be clean and spotless? All of us should play our individual roles in the society to bring about the collective change that we so desperately need!

Examples like the above seem to be countless and unending but I believe my message has been well explained already so this article would no longer be prolonged. It is high time that we change our mindsets in order to take the country forward or lag behind everyone else in this fast paced world. Change, as they say, seems to be the only constant!

mahdin@thedailystar.net

Spotlight: Earn While You Learn

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/05/03/camspotlight.htm

Photo: Wasama Doja

Sarah Z H, Tanzina Rahman, Mahdin Mahboob, Tawsif Saleheen, Nazia Ahmed, Tabassum Mokhduma, Fariha Ishrat Khandaker & Ridwan Karim

Part time jobs have always attracted university and college level students for more reasons than one. We have heard from our fathers and grandfathers about lodging-masters, brilliant students who used to stay in the houses of well-off people in big cities and teach their children while pursuing their own studies in colleges and universities. This practice started in this region in the British era and survived through the Pakistani rule and continued after the independence as well. For many of them, choosing to be the full time home tutor was not an option, but a necessity.

Today, in the twenty first century, many other avenues of part time jobs have opened up for the students of colleges and universities. Starting from good old home tuition to teaching in schools and coaching centres, to becoming call centre executives and to the more recent trends of becoming online bloggers and radio jockeys, opportunities seem to be unlimited and ever growing.

Photo: Tanzina Rahman

LOOKING into most popular part-time jobs among the university students, private tuitions have taken its stand to attract significant amount of individuals. To some it is the flexible timing, while to others it’s the notion of the profession that appears to be the most convenient way of earning money.

“It’s easier for a university student to get these tuitions and manage them rather than to get fixed part-time jobs. We arrange the timing with the students according to our timetable. And there are other reasons as well, I feel independent and I can also bear my expenses rather than being a pain for my parents” explained Nazia Sultana, 21, student of Independent University Bangladesh, School of Business.

While Z Z Khan, a 3rd year student at North South University said she has been teaching students of different age groups since the days of her A levels. “Teaching is all about learning how to deal with different kinds of people. By getting a chance to interact with students of different age groups, one can learn about the psychology of students and how they react to certain situations. If someone is interested in taking up teaching as a profession in the future then part time tutoring gives you a great opportunity to guide other people and master a sense of responsibility. One can tutor up to 20 to 30 students in a batch depending on his or her capacity. For much younger kids, one mustn’t try to tutor more than 6 at a time. Khan believes teaching makes her a better person and is a fun job at the end of the day. The amount of money that is earned through part time teaching is fairly decent. The only drawback about this job would be at times it could make you tired and not want to do your own studies!”

Furthermore, female university students tend to take junior level classes at private English medium schools as well. It appears that, for most of them it is a more convenient way of earning money, since the timing of their work is more suited with their university schedules. The pay is not so bad either.

According to the school administration, university students can relate more to the classes they teach. When asked, a bunch of fifth graders seemed pretty excited to have a teacher who was not so old and taught them with more enthusiasm. From the perspective of these part-time teachers, it’s an easy and fun way to make money, gain experience, and add another line on their resume.

Thus, it seems that there is a well-balanced symbiosis.
Teaching Assistantship in universities is another such profession. During the course of their studies, high CGPA holder students secure employment as TAs. The profession enhances their comprehensive reading skills as well as adds value to teaching profession if they consider pursuing in the related field.

After completing his A Levels, Azeezur Rahman Khan joined Chittagong Grammar School, Chittagong (CGS) as an Assistant Physics Trainee Teacher last August, the school from where he completed his A Levels. Now enrolled in Physics in University College London (UCL), he firmly believes that what he learned all these days while teaching actually helped him a lot to increase his knowledge and go in-depth about Physics. He said, “My classes will start within a couple of months and I am happy that because of my job I have learned a lot which will help me in my undergraduate programme. Moreover, because of this job I got both economic independence and experience, which is priceless as this experience will boost my chances of getting scholarships in future”.

Call Centre is another field that is becoming one of the most progressive industries in Bangladesh. It’s also an industry that relies heavily on part timers. Many private Call Centres in Bangladesh are staffed by university students and in some cases fresh A level/ HSC graduates. While it gives the students an exposure to the international market, due to the late working hours in a call centre it also acts as an added stress.

Nur-Us Shams who is associated with Orbit Communications, one of the leading call centres in Bangladesh has talked about the reason why many call centres prefer recruiting part timers.

“One of the major problems faced by the call centre industry of our country is that we don’t have well trained man power. As a result the industry has to depend on part timers. Due to time difference with the western world, students employed in the call centres have to work in the night shift. This might create imbalance in the student’s life. As a result, call centres that employ students as part timers should adopt practices that reduce their work stress,” he said.

Thanks to the steady growth of private television and radio channels in Bangladesh, opportunities are now opening up for students as newscasters and radio jockeys.

Frizea Talukdar is an MBA student who works as a part time newsreader at Bangladesh Television. She said it’s a lot of pressure when she has exams and a news reading schedule at the same time. Her job is otherwise rewarding as she can learn about what is happening around the world and from such a reliable source. She has been working for two years and sometimes had to miss classes because she had schedules set earlier for the day. However, Frizea is not satisfied with the amount of money she earns from her job.

Nafeez Karim studies BBA at Independent University Bangladesh. He said, “I’m working as a part time Radio Jockey for the last six months. After a rigorous 25 days of training from the producers and the more experienced RJs, I joined Radio Aamar as a part time Radio Jockey. I have my own show on air and have to work 2 hours a week. My employers are very understanding if I can’t make it to the office due to exams.”

Sometimes the part timers have a chance to work extra in shifts. Nafeez stresses on the fact that the working environment is worthy. Although they are given a basic guideline on how to make things work the RJs are always encouraged to explore creativity and bring in new ideas to transform the programs into something better. When asked whether he is satisfied with the amount of money he earns from his job, he said the level of his satisfaction waivers somewhere in between.

Omer Nashaad a private university student shared his views on his part time job as a DJ and studying at the same time.

“I started off as a mobile DJ back in Canada at Windsor. When I came back, I continued being a DJ beside my studies. The key is to keep yourself updated on the latest as well as the old music as much as you can. Once you have that rolling, you’re a hit!

“From the financial point of view, being a DJ brings in fast money. As for bridging between studies and the job, frankly, it all depends on how you divide your time. I, for example, chose weekends to do DJ shows, which never clashed with my classes,” he added.

Photo: Tanzina Rahman

Sabhanaz Rashid has been working as a part time photographer for the last 8/9 months. Most of her works are assignment based. She has worked for a popular English teen magazine called Rising Stars and Cotton Bangladesh group. Sometimes she sells her photos, which give her an opening as an aspiring artist. She sells them depending on the usage of the photo and the level of copyright. Photography for her is about exercising a level of creativity with much fun and excitement. She proudly pronounced that her part time job as a photographer hasn’t affected her studies as she carefully kept the two things separate. She likes to call her job surprisingly refreshing and exciting in a very positive way.

Nowadays many of the students go into the field of event management. According to Saif of Game Theory (A new age innovative media solutions company): this particular field is not suitable for students who want to achieve a good grade and graduate in time. This is because of the long hours and tedious workload. It mainly includes organizing events, making sure the banners, caterers, MCs, and decorations are in place to run a successful event.

Meanwhile, many students from Computer Science background, and others from non-technical backgrounds who have trained themselves in different web-developing software are finding web-development projects and making good money out of it. Some students are writing articles and taking pictures for different websites while some students have even gone onto the entrepreneurial level by opening local ISPs (Internet Service Providers) themselves.

Hussain M. Elius has been web designing for sometime now. It started out as a hobby but when he realized that he was growing a very keen interest in the job, he decided to make it his part time source of earning. He is a first year student at a private university in Dhaka and has already worked for One Degree Initiative, The Daily New Age, Business Report and a Norwegian cosmetic company. Hussain thinks web designing is particularly linked with personal development. It requires a certain kind of mental skill and a great deal of patience. It’s true that at times he got carried away by the huge amount of money this job offered him and as a result flunked in his studies; he also became conscious about not overworking himself. He has promised to himself that he will not work on more than one website in a month.

While, Rajiv Ashrafi loves writing and is currently enrolled at a well known private university of the country. He has been working as a part time blogger for the last 2 years. He works for two sites, Digital Battle and Screenhead which regularly offers reviews, news and interviews on games and movies. He believes, it is worth it because you can sit at home and stay connected doing exactly what you’re required to do. This experience will earn him acceptance later in life when he wants to move into something more serious. The only difference is, working for an online magazine or a site doesn’t allow you to meet the people physically. So far it hasn’t affected his studies since he can do it all without having to travel anywhere and the payment he says is quite good. Md. Sarfaraz Khan is a student at the Jahangirnagar University. Since last October he coupled with some of his friends has been working part time as Internet Service Providers in Uttara.Some parts of the outskirts of Uttara had no access to Internet services and Sarfaraz thought it would be great if he could make arrangements by providing broadband Internet services especially to the students who lived in that particular area. So he went on with his plan and now successfully runs Clicknet online services. He has divided his time with his other friends to look after their venture. He mostly works 2 to 3 days a week and enjoys it very much. The amount of money he makes from his job is quite enough to keep him going for the month. He gladly shares that his job has only helped him in his studies as he can learn more about business and other practicalities from his experience.

On a different note, between the past few years, many foreign franchises such as KFC, Pizza Hut and A&W have started their business in Bangladesh. Restaurant business, which is also considered as one of the promising business here, continues to thrive as well. However, working at fast-food chains and restaurants is somewhat a taboo in this country. It is unlikely to find high school or university students working in fast-food chains, which is a usual custom in western countries. During summer vacations and semester breaks, fast-food and restaurants opens temporary employment positions. Since students tend to seek for temporary job placements, these positions stand as the perfect match. “I chose to serve in a restaurant because I knew it was fast money, I can make large amounts of cash tips in a few hours to help pay for bills, tuition and my lifestyle,” said Danielle Renee Jones, 21, a student of paediatrics in Ohio State University (US). “The hours aren’t typically too bad, and I can have a flexible schedule for the most part. I can earn what some people make working 20-40 hours a week, in only three days!” she added. Unlike United States, society here downgrades these jobs plus swingeing unemployment makes it difficult to get into such placements.

Shama Zainab Ali of BRAC University a professor of Architecture said, “In my department I see students working in firms as part timers helping out in making models, drafts and drawings. This not only enhances their capabilities as architecture students but also provokes them to take up responsibility in their own works.

A few days ago I saw an undergrad student of Titumeer college (as she said) selling encyclopaedia at my door. I really appreciated such efforts by these young people who are eager to help their parents support their education. I hope to see that someday this country, like India and other developing countries of the subcontinent cater students to work in bookshops, restaurants, coffee shops and so many other places where we normally expect to see uneducated or middle aged people from underprivileged backgrounds.”

Few students can now deny the self-dependence that comes with being able to earn their own pocket money and not having to take it from their parents. For many, the work experience gained while they are still students make their résumé stand out while applying for jobs at the end of their studies. However, some seem to get indulged in their work a bit too much, which at times result in falling grades at the cost of earning more.

Globalisation – The Bangladesh Scenario

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/04/03/feature_globalisation.htm

JUST the other day, I was browsing through the newspaper and I came across this interesting advertisement for a job in a managerial position in a certain company. One of the requirements was ‘the incumbent must be a foreign national’. Thought-provoking to say the least! Why a foreign national is a must (and not any particular skills) for any job continues to baffle me, but one thing is for sure; globalisation has started to make its presence known in Bangladesh.

Towards the end of last year, US President Barack Obama was speaking about how an American university graduate from Boston today has to compete for a job with someone from Bangalore. Thanks to jobs being outsourced and most finished goods being imported rather than being produced in US, an acute shortage of jobs has been created and this has gradually pulled down the economy. Although this has come as a form of blessing for countries like India or Vietnam (which has benefited most from the outsourcing) and China or Mexico (which has benefited from the overwhelming imports), it still remains to be found where this leaves a country like Bangladesh.

The world wide web, once designed by the American Defence to ensure smooth, uninterrupted and secure communication between US military personnel spread out all over the world has today become the tool of communication for business, news, academics, research and anything and everything between heaven and earth. Using a computer or internet is no longer considered rocket science and from villages like Ta Van in Vietnam or Shagatha in Bangladesh, people are using the easily available information for many different purposes.

Bidding for a book or a musical accessory is now possible over the Internet, no matter where you are or what nationality you belong to. Job hunters in Chittagong are looking for available job opportunities in Dhaka, or elsewhere in the country simply by logging onto their bdjobs or prothom-alo jobs accounts online. No longer do we have to wait for the weekend show on TV for the US or UK movie or music Top 10. Everything, it seems, is just a click away, in the truest sense of the word. Communications and the free flow of information is now no longer a luxury, but a necessity.

The fact that many Bangladeshi students are going to different countries in the world for higher studies are also influencing the global culture that we seem to have today. The USA and UK were always places sought after for university education, but today, you will hear people going for their Bachelors, Masters or PhD to Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Finland, Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, China and even Thailand and South Africa for that matter! Although many opt to stay back after their studies, the majority of these people come back to Bangladesh, and with them, brings back not only their education, but a rich cultural experience.

In addition to the students, there are Non Resident Bangladeshis who keep coming and going in and out of the country are also slowly and decisively shaping the cultural pattern of the country. Although the demand for skilled professionals will always remain high in the developed countries, this has also led to certain individuals taking advantage of the situation and fooling the less privileged and educated classes of the society into complete doom with offers of lucrative dream jobs in Malaysia, UAE and other middle eastern countries. These people, who contribute to the bulk of our foreign currency income, get minimal importance and priority and the government should take stern actions to stop the human traffickers and cheats who rob the common people of all their belongings.

Add to that are all the foreign nationals that reside in this country because of many sorts of different jobs and business in the development field, foreign missions and many other purposes. Dhaka, if not the whole country, has truly become a melting pot of people of all different nationalities and races. This has effected the demand pattern of Bangladeshis as well; demand for different international branded cars, clothes, shoes, lighters and perfumes is thus high paving the way for bulk imports of such products. This comes at the cost of hard earned foreign currency essential to buy important products like powdered milk, fruits, fuel and different other raw materials required for our factories and industries.

Whether we see a glass of water to be half full or half empty depends on our perception and attitude. The effects of globalization can have equally positive and negative impacts. We as a nation should try to make best use of the situation like our neighbouring countries of India and China and not delve into the luxuries that come with globalization.

Spotlight: Pahela Baishakh Festivity

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/04/02/camspotlight.htm

IF there is any festival that unites all of us Bangalis, it is none other than the Bengali New Year or Pahela Baishakh. This is a time that enables us to forget all the differences and indulge in celebrating our Bangaliana.

Pahela Baishakh also brings in forefront the everlasting folk songs of this region. Folk songs have recently been even more popularised by singers and musicians like Habib, Ornob, Anushesh and Maksud who have made the young generation once again interested in this genre of music. This week’s spotlight is about the revival of folk music in Bangladesh.

Mahdin Mahboob
Star Campus Desk

Photo:
Mustafizur Rahman

Spotlight: Adda @ Coffee World

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/04/01/camspotlight.htm

Photos by:
Ishtiaque Bin Quashem & Rajiv Ashrafi

Star Campus, since its inception has hosted different interactive events, aptly titled Adda in both The Daily Star office as well as different other venues outside. As Chief Guests, it has brought in eminent personalities like Professor Kabir Chowdhury (renowned academic, Dhaka University), Professor Nazrul Islam (Chairman, University Grants Commission, Bangladesh), Professor Syed Munir Khasru (Institute of Business Administration, Dhaka University), Professor Shaheen Kabir and Asrar Chowdhury (Jahangirnagar University), Syed Badrul Ahsan (Editor, Current Affairs, The Daily Star) and many others.

Campus Adda is back again this year and from now on, we’ll have regular events bringing in celebrities from different walks of life, sports, music and the literary world as well as academics. This month’s event was jointly organized by Star Campus, Coffee World and Pizza Corner.

To participate in these lively discussions, send an email to starcampus@gmail.com and get invited!

We look forward to seeing YOU in our Addas.

Mahdin Mahboob
Star Campus Desk

Spotlight: Thoughts on Independence Day

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/03/04/camspotlight.htm

http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/03/04/camspotlight_better.htm

in·de·pen·dence (nd-pndns)
n.
1. The state or quality of being independent.
2. Archaic Sufficient income for comfortable self-support; a competence.

26th March, 2009 would mark the 38th year of our independence. On this day in 1971, we as a nation finally found our identity after having been ruled by foreign invaders for hundreds of years.

The early traces of civilization here in Bengal date back to four thousand years, and the first settlers included the Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic peoples. Although the exact origin of the words ‘Bangla’ or ‘Bengal’ is unknown, it is widely believed to have been derived from Bang, the Dravidian-speaking tribe that settled in the area around the year 1000 BC. Since then, Bengal has seen itself being ruled by many foreign forces.

After being ruled by Hindu and Buddhist kings, Muslim invaders, the Mughals, the British and finally the Pakistanis, we finally managed to have our true identity in 1971 as Bangladeshis. But after thirty-eight years of being independent, one may ask how much of the values of the War of Liberation have truly been fulfilled? How much have we truly progressed?

Perhaps it is easy to make excuses about the many problems we face as a small country with a staggeringly high population and very few natural resources. Perhaps we would still like to be called a young nation. But how logical would these claims be? Let’s have a look at another Asian country, similar to us in many aspects, but yet so different!

Singapore, a small island city-state in South Asia, with a land mass two hundred times smaller than that of our country, gained its full sovereignty in 1965, not long before our independence.

Starting off with problems including mass unemployment, housing shortages, and a dearth of land and natural resources, Singapore today has not only overcome all these problems, but has grown to be the fifth most economically solvent country in the world with a per capita income of over $50,000/yr, just about fifty times of what we earn! In spite of having a population density of 6814/km2 (six and a half times that of our country), Singapore today has to import manpower from different countries across Asia, including Bangladesh.

So, did the government in Singapore have a magic wand? They definitely did not; what they had was consistency and long term plans, which sadly, we always fail to achieve. In spite of the huge human resource available in our country we have failed to truly achieve according to our potentials. What are the things that have been holding us back as a nation?

Lack of long term planning: A couple of months back, Prothom Alo, a leading Bengali newspaper of Bangladesh, published a four-page special supplement about the hundreds of unfinished bridges that can be seen all across the country, a glaring example of how much we fail in our long term plans. The story of course is same; if one government starts a bridge or a road, the construction work goes on till that government is in power. As soon as there is a change of government, the bridge/road/project is left stranded, just like that!

Power Shortage: The buzzword today seems to be of a Digital Bangladesh, promised to be delivered by the year 2021 by the current government. Although an ambitious plan, it is still doable given that certain prerequisites are met first. The government should make the production of electrical energy a first priority since the country simply cannot prosper with a power shortage of 2000 MW every day!

Fighting amongst ourselves: Why do we tend to fight amongst ourselves? Between political parties? Between different faiths? Between different ideologies? It’s time that all of us should start behaving like responsible citizens in order to take our country forward.

Student Politics: Student Politics in Bangladesh have gone drastically wrong and it must be stopped in all institutions at once. Students of colleges and universities are meant to study and not have armed fights between themselves!

Corruption: I personally believe the single most important factor that has been holding us back is corruption. Corruption truly is the root of all evil. It is easy to remain oblivious about it and think that it is something done only by politicians and government servants only. Very wrong; we are all corrupt in our own different ways. To avoid being fined after violating a traffic law, we offer bribes to the policeman; we do that to make things work faster. Guess what? That makes us equally corrupt and hence the practice continues. It’s high time that all of us change our ways.

But amidst all these obstacles, we are still moving forward because there are certain things that bind us as a nation. First and foremost is the sovereignty of the land that our forefathers fought for.

We are all one when it comes to that. Simple things like a game of cricket between Bangladesh and any other team in the world or the Pahela Boishakh celebrations show our oneness as a nation. So on the occasion of the thirty-eighth year of our independence, let us all promise to overcome these problems and build a better and beautiful Bangladesh.

The cynics would still ask, can we really overcome all these hurdles and march forward? The answer of course is, Yes we can!

Spotlight: Expectations from the New Government

http://thedailystar.net/campus/2008/12/03/camspotlight_expectation.htm

Photo: Iqbal Ahmed/ Driknews

Welcome to the 21st century! A time when it is possible to have an African-American man to be the president of the United States, to abolish the age old monarchy in Nepal and to hold parliamentary elections in the secluded Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan. A Bangladesh where there hasn’t been a Hartal/Strike/Oborodh for two long years!

Yes, everything is possible today, but it will only happen if all of us believe that we will be able to do it. In this election, a lot of change has been promised and expected but there are speculations as to how much change actually will happen when the new government takes power in a couple of weeks time!

In recent times, there has been a growing demand for not electing the marked collaborators of the Pakistani Army in 1971 (Razakars). I personally believe that as much as it is important not to put the Razakars back to power, it is also equally important not to put today’s Razakars back to power. And who would today’s Razakars be? They are the corrupts, the loan defaulters and the terrorists and any other people for whom getting elected was meant to be an opportunity to fulfil all their personal whims and wishes, rather than an opportunity to serve the nation!

My expectations from the new government would be to minimize corruption and to improvise the communication systems. I believe corruption has been the root of all evil in Bangladesh and minimizing it, if not completely eliminating it, should be the first priority. According to a New York Times report, over 30 billion US Dollars have been poured into this state as foreign aid from 1971 to 2005 and we still continue to have a huge number of people living below the poverty line!

Communication systems between the different cities and townships (and inside them) in Bangladesh has much room for improvement and it is high time that it is done now. A divided expressway between Dhaka and Chittagong is a must and so are a number of flyovers in different locations across Dhaka city.

And lastly, I would want the opposition party not to call any strikes/hartals and oborodhs and think of other peaceful means of protest instead. Both the party in power and the one in opposition should work together to make a beautiful and prosperous Bangladesh that our forefathers had fought for 37 years back.

On a concluding note, I would like to point out that the upcoming election will have a record 31 percent of first time voters, on which we had previously published another cover story (http://www.thedailystar.net/campus/2008/02/03/camspotlight.htm). This week’s cover is all about the different expectations young people have, whose votes are likely to have a major impact in shaping up the new government.

So, on Election Day tomorrow (29th December, 2008), go and cast your vote for someone who is most likely to benefit your area the most. This is your chance to play a role in shaping up the new government so do not waste it!

Spotlight: Biotechnology, Bangladesh Moves Forward

http://thedailystar.net/campus/2008/12/01/camspotlight.htm

International Symposium on Biotechnology held

Research and applications of biotechnology in the fields of agriculture, medicine and fisheries are gradually coming to the centre stage. Climate change due to global warming, topographical change and other determining factors are necessitating intense research in improving the qualities, lifetime and yieldability of crops. In view of this, BRAC University and the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) have jointly organized an International Symposium on Regulatory and Safety Issues in Commercialization of Biotechnology Research in Developing Countries in Dhaka- between the 2nd-4th of this month.

The Symposium covered topics on technology transfer; IP and IPR; Biosafety; Bioethics; Clinical and Field Trials and Regulatory Affairs which are considered very relevant to research, development and commercial application of biotechnology in developing countries.

Dr. C S Karim, Adviser, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh was the Chief Guest at the inaugural session while Mr. Manik Lal Samaddar, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser, Ministry of Science and ICT, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh was present as the Special Guest.

The symposium was funded by Ministry of Science and Information Technology (GoB), Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Bangladesh Academy of Sciences, the Center for Intellectual Property, CIP (Sweden), Incepta Pharmacuticals Limited, ICDDR,B and a number of other local organizations.

The main purpose of the symposium was to provide relevant information and to educate practising biotechnologists and other professionals in these areas so that they can make informed decisions based on international practices.

Invited foreign speakers included Prof. Virander Chauhan and Dr. Siva Reddy of ICGEB, Delhi, Mr. Decio Ripandelli and Dr. Mark Tepfer of ICGEB, Trieste and Prof. Ananda Chakravarty of University of Illinios among others. Local speakers included Prof. A A Azad, Prof. Naiyyum Chowdhury (BRAC University), Dr. Firdausi Quadri and Dr. Michael Behan (ICDDR,B), Prof. Haseena Khan and Prof. Rakha Hari Sarker (University of Dhaka), Dr Liakat Ali and Dr Azad Khan (BIRDEM) among others.

Spotlight: James P Grant @ BRACU – A School of Excellence in Public Health

http://thedailystar.net/campus/2008/11/01/camspotlight.htm

James P Grant School of Public Health @ BRAC University

With a vision of ‘A world where everyone enjoys the maximum potential of health’, the James P Grant School of Public Health at BRAC University has made a significant mark in public health education in Bangladesh and in South Asia in general.

In South Asia, one of the first public health institutions was the school of Tropical Medicine, which was set up in Kolkata in 1922. After that, similar institutions soon began to appear in the region, but according to a WHO report, most of these schools in India and other South Asian countries failed to create major impact due to ‘neglect, assignment of lowest priority, low prestige, poor quality of staff, and inadequate facilities such as transport and field practice areas’.

To integrate community experiences in public health education, the Rockefeller Foundation helped set up a few schools of public health in Uganda, Kenya, Ghana, Zimbabwe and Vietnam. However, the number of such types of schools were much less compared to the demands.

To address the many problems that public health is facing, and to test new teaching/learning methodologies, BRAC, one of the largest development organizations in the world, set up a school of Public Health in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Named after the late executive director of UNICEF, the James P Grant School of Public Health is today breaking new ground in innovative teaching and in creating leaders for public health in developing countries.

During the formation of the school, BRAC collaborated with prestigious public health schools in developed countries including Johns Hopkins and Columbia Universities to develop the curriculum. Guest Professors from those schools also teach in some of the school’s courses. “The idea of setting up the school grew from BRAC’s continued effort in alleviating poverty in disadvantaged parts of the world,” says Professor AMR Choudhury, Dean of the school.

The Program
Since its commencement in 2005, three batches of 77 participants from 14 countries have now graduated from the school through its Master of Public Health (MPH) programme. In the current acadmeic year, there are 12 students from 11 countries of Asia, Africa, Europe and North America and 18 students from Bangladesh. While some of the students from the earlier batches have continued on to doctoral-level studies, most are now back in their own countries and have taken up jobs in various government, donor agencies, media and non-governmental organizations.

Uniqueness of the program
The James P Grant School has several features which makes it stand apart from its counterparts.

1) It emphasises on both the art and science of public health. Apart from the MPH and the several other short courses that the school offers, the faculty members are involved in research on important issues that Bangladesh and other low-income countries face.

2) The location of the school is in a developing country, thus providing a ’social laboratory’ for teaching and learning.

3) The fact that it is placed in a development organisation like BRAC which has total commitment to help the poor and the disadvantaged and which tries to blur the artificial divide between health and development and its vast human, material and infrastructural resources.

In the December 2007 issue of the widely circulated Bulletin of the World Health Organization, the school has been featured and the article states that, “[The school] is one of a new breed of public health institutions based in a developing country. It offers courses relevant to Bangladesh as well as international public health issues, and attracts students from both developing and developed countries.”

In 2006, the school organized the launching of Bangladesh Health Watch Report and Professor Amartya Sen, Nobel Laureate was present as the Chief Guest in the occasion. Speaking on the occasion, he emphasized that increased slogan of privatization cannot provide health services to all citizens and basic public sector services are essential to provide health security. He drew upon his experiences in China and India and noted that in China, privatization worked for agriculture and industry but not for health. He cautioned that in the name of privatization, we should not be quick to accept and legitimize quacks and fraudulent practitioners. He also emphasized the importance of democracy and the right to information and strengthening of citizen’s voices, which create pressure for better health and services for all citizens.

Also present in that occasion was Mr. Fazle Hasan Abed, Founder and Chairperson of BRAC who emphasized the role of proper management in solving the nation’s health problems. He assured that this initiative would, in the future, investigate focused issues through grassroots level investigations.

Faculty Members
The faculty members in this school comprise of core faculty members and others from BRAC, ICDDR,B and foreign partner institutions. For each course there is a foreign faculty member and one or more local counterparts. The school plans to gradually reduce dependence on foreign faculty through induction of more core faculty.

Research
* Research is a core function of any vibrant academic institution and this school is no exception. Current research projects of the school include:

* Monitoring Equity in the Bangladesh health system (with ICDDR,B and MoH).

* Study on sexual and reproductive health and rights (with IDS/Sussex, Indepth Network, Engender Health, etc.)

* Global Health Equity Project (The World Bank).

The Centre for Health Systems Studies of the school has the potential of strengthening the health system in Bangladesh by informing, guiding and systematically evaluating policies of the health sector and to promote population health. In addition to the launching of the Health Watch Report, the centre has undertaken a number of research activities. Currently, a study is being done on the public private partnership service delivery models in Bangladesh. Dr. Mushtaque Chowdhury oversees the Centre as Director while Dr. Sabina Faiz Rashid serves as the Coordinator of the Centre.

The Centre for Gender, Sexuality and HIV/AIDS, established in collaboration with UNAIDS is designated for research, policy, advocacy and training activities utilizing the state-of-the-art methods and technologies of teaching/learning and providing unique opportunities in hands-on field experience in dealing with gender, sexuality, and HIV/AIDS in Bangladesh and other developing countries.

Modern healthcare is about disease control and MPH is about learning methods and techniques to control disease in the grassroots levels in developing countries including Bangladesh. James P Grant School of Public Health, through its continued quest for success, should serve as a model for similar institutions in Bangladesh and in other South Asian countries.

(mahdin.mahboob@gmail.com)

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Interview of Mushtaque Chowdhury

Dean of the James P Grant School of Public Health

Mushtaque Chowdhury, PhD is the Dean of the BRAC University James P Grant School of Public Health. He is the Deputy Executive Director of BRAC where he oversees the health programs, which include maternal, newborn and child health, tuberculosis control, water, sanitation and hygiene, HIV/AIDS prevention, and nutrition.

Dr. Chowdhury is also a Professor of Population and Family Health at the Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University in New York, and serves on the boards of many international initiatives and journals. He was a co-coordinator of the Millennium Task Force on Child Health and Maternal Health and of the Joint Learning Initiative Working group on Priority Diseases. He is the co-recipient of the ‘Innovator of the Year 2006′ award given by the Marriott Business School of Brigham Young University in USA for his work in making reading glasses available to the poor for improved livelihood.

In an interview with Mahdin Mahboob of Star Campus, Dr Chowdhury has spoken about the various aspects of the MPH program at BRAC University.

Star Campus (SC): The MPH Program at BRAC University is known to be the first of its kind (among private universities) in the country and one of the world’s best. Please tell us in details how this program has ranked compared to other such schools worldwide and in Bangladesh?
Dr. Mushtaque Chowdhury (DMC): The BRAC School of Public Health was set up in 2004. The flagship programme of the School is the Master of Public Health (MPH), which opened its door to students in early 2005. Afterwards, many other universities in the private sector have also started MPH programmes. This proves two things: one is that the BRAC School is a pioneer and the second is that there is a demand for such a degree in Bangladesh. Globally, the BRAC School has earned a name for itself already. In any meeting on public health education, we are invited to share our experiences. The US universities implementing global health programmes have recently started a consortium and we were invited to speak at its launching at the University of California in San Francisco. The Bulletin of the World Health Organization, a most prestigious journal published by WHO, show-cased six schools in the world as examples of innovation and the BRAC School was one of them.

SC: Who are the students that study for this program? Are there scholarship opportunities for meritorious Bangladeshi / International students?
DMC: We take 30 students every year for the MPH. Diversity is an important aspect of any educational programme and that’s why we ensure that half of our students are women, half are non-physicians (meaning half are doctors) and half are international. In the current batch the students come from 12 countries of Asia, Africa, Europe and North America. To attract the best students, we do offer scholarships. However, students coming from the first world have to pay the full tuition.

SC: What are the biggest achievements of this program?
DMC: The School has already made a mark for itself in the world of public health education. It is a young institution but we already have graduated 77 students through the MPH programme. Hundreds of others have attended short courses that we offer on various public health issues. All the graduates are now employed in governments, NGOs, universities, research organizations, media and donor agencies and are contributing to improving the health of the population, which is our ultimate aim. The School is also contributing to many current debates in public health. It works as the Secretariat for the Bangladesh Health Watch, a civil society initiative. In the most recent report of the Watch, the issue of the human resources in health was highlighted. It sparked a lot of attention among different stakeholders. There are a number of ways through which a higher education programme is evaluated. One robust indicator is how the reputed universities in the North (and South) recognize the degrees offered by BRAC School. As of now, several of our graduates have been accepted for PhD programmes at Harvard, Columbia, George Washington, University of California and London. These are indications of the high esteem that these universities treat our graduates with. Also, the Asia Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH), a prestigious regional organization has accorded recognition to the BRAC School by electing it as a member. In addition, the school has attracted donor attention. For example, the European Commission recently awarded the BRAC School over five million Euros to carry out a Food Security and Nutritional Surveillance Project (FSNSP) for the next five years.

SC: What are the research facilities for students of this program?
DMC: In the MPH programme, the students are required to do an original research work. In this they are supervised by accomplished researchers based in Bangladesh. Students get only about 10 weeks to complete this thesis work but they have shown how much useful work can be accomplished in this short period. Many students have published their thesis in reputed journals.

SC: What makes the BRACU MPH program unique?
DMC: The BRAC School is unique in many ways. The first is its location in Bangladesh and hosting by BRAC and its wide network. This provides a social laboratory accessible to its students which no other institution in the world can offer. The second is the partnership we have with many institutions in Bangladesh and abroad, both for teaching and research. The ICDDR,B is the most important partner with its world-class scientists, research facilities and libraries. The third is the emphasis that we attach to both the art and science of public health. Research is an integral part of life at the School. Advocacy for health is also equally emphasized. The fourth is the emphasis on community-based experiential learning. The first six months of the MPH is conducted in a rural site where the students reside and regularly interact with villagers through exercises illustrating public health in practice. In the Dhaka semester the students continue their community learning by interacting with urban residents particularly the slum dwellers. The fifth is the diversity. Our student body is diverse and so is the faculty. The faculty who come from within and outside Bangladesh bring wide experiences from around the world. You get the best of Harvard, Columbia, Hopkins, Amsterdam, London, Karolinska, Kerala, ICDDR,B and BRAC in one place!

Spotlight: Asia Regional Higher Education Summit

http://thedailystar.net/campus/2008/10/02/camspotlight.htm

Higher Education’s Response to Global Challenges

“The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence.” –Rabindranath Tagore

The Asia Regional Higher Education Summit was recently held in Dhaka between October 6-9 with a view to expanding innovative approaches to teaching, research, technology transfer and business development in higher education. Attended by senior educationists from all across the world, the four-day summit proposed a range of ideas for the development of key sectors and how higher education could play a role in it. The summit was organized by USAID in association with the University of Dhaka and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.

This summit, the first of its kind in Asia, called for stronger partnerships among public and private institutions across the globe to face the emerging challenges. Around 150 university presidents and vice chancellors, senior executives of businesses and foundations and government officials participated in the summit titled “Higher Education’s Response to Global Challenges.”

Speakers at the inaugural session termed terrorism, food shortages, energy deficiency and poverty the major challenges that the world is undergoing today, saying that it is higher education and innovative thinking that can help face these challenges.

Education Adviser Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural function, said, “Degradation of ecology, population, rapid urbanisation and poverty are the major issues in the case of Bangladesh. It is of immense importance that the universities of Bangladesh get linked with those of other countries for more collaboration in researches and innovations, he said, urging both the public and private universities to take the opportunities of partnerships and achieve excellence. ”

Asian University of Women in Chittagong is an excellent example of partnership at regional level, he added.

The Education adviser also said that it is not only the partnership in terms of resources, but for sharing experiences and mobilising alumni of the educational institutions, which empower the institutions. But so far such initiatives have not been touched upon in significant manner.

A key focus should be ethical issue that is to uplift the underprivileged, he said, adding, “This is a bigger social support.” Teachers’ training is another important area to be focused on.

The adviser said Bangladesh’s focus so far has been on primary education to build a foundation, but now it is also putting focus on higher education and is formulating a law for the private universities, a newly flourishing area of higher education in the country.

In the opening ceremony of the summit, US Ambassador to Bangladesh James F Moriarty was also present. He said higher education institutions make vital contributions to national and international development. In many ways, American higher education community represents the US traditions of enterprise, pluralism, diversity, compassion and humanitarianism.

In recent years, traditional relationships between the US and primarily European higher education institutions have expanded in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, he said, adding this expansion has included the formation of stronger and more prevalent linkages with multinational corporations, non-government organisations and foundations.

“I firmly believe that these trends will contribute significantly to reducing global poverty in the coming years,” the Ambassador said.

USAID Bureau of Asia Acting Assistant Administrator Mark Ward in his keynote said the US aid from private sector to the developing world now is much more than that of the official aid.

This calls for partnerships in terms of higher education as we, he said, adding that ways should be found out how the national and multinational corporations can be partnered for the development of higher education systems and researches.

Dhaka University Vice Chancellor Prof SMA Faiz and BUET Vice Chancellor Prof AMM Safiullah also spoke at the inaugural programme.

Thomas Farrell, US deputy assistant secretary of state for education and cultural affairs said that the US is keen to extend higher education programmes to Asian countries, including Bangladesh, to help face global challenges such as food security, disaster management and poverty reduction. “The number of visas issued to Bangladeshi students has increased recently. We welcome them… we want to see more students,”

The US may award five more Fulbright scholarships to Bangladeshi students a year in the areas of food security and disaster management, he added.

Presently, the US awards 18 to 20 Fullbright scholarships to Bangladeshi students and sends 14 to 16 academics for teaching or researches to Bangladesh, according to a newspaper report.

The summit focused on four areas — food security, women’s entrepreneurship, and teacher’s training and natural disaster management — for discussion.

“Higher education has no alternatives. The US, therefore, internationally develops programmes and facilitates individuals and institutions for better education and research,” Thomas Farrell said while talking to reporters on the sidelines of the summit.

Dhaka University Vice Chancellor Prof SMA Faiz, who moderated a session on ‘Building Innovative Higher Education Partnerships’, said the summit discussed elaborately on the ways the universities in Asia and the US can strengthen partnerships.

These partnerships can surely be with the private sectors, including the national and multinational corporations, he said, adding that representatives of Microsoft, Intel, Aga Khan Foundation have already extended their support to the tertiary education.

“The academics of various countries are sharing their experiences. This is a great scope for partnership,” he said, adding that the summit will surely open new avenues of stronger collaboration.

A participant suggested preparing a directory of the universities in Asia and the US to facilitate sharing of the best practices that contribute to the excellence in education.
BRAC Executive Director Mahabub Hossain at a session on food security said developing high yielding varieties of crops is a challenge in the agriculture sector, as arable land is declining in countries like Bangladesh.

However, generating more employments with better pay for poor people to ensure food security is a greater challenge in Bangladesh, he added.

All in all, the summit ended on a successful note with proposals for associating higher education more to the growing challenges in today’s world. The successful implementation of these plans is expected to pave the way for a better and more peaceful future.