Call for quality education to improve living standards

Speakers at a programme in Dhaka have urged policymakers and development partners to raise the quality of education to international standards, arguing that meaningful progress depends on a skilled new generation.
Their core message was simple: better teachers mean better futures.
The call came on Thursday at an event organised by Good Neighbours Bangladesh (GNB) at a hotel in the capital.
The programme marked the completion of a UNESCO–Hamdan award-winning teacher development project and the launch of a new teacher-training handbook.
The event was chaired by GNB Country Head Bertin Gomez.
Subvina Monir Chithi, Deputy Secretary General of the Bangladesh National Commission for UNESCO, said sustained efforts to strengthen teacher capacity had already produced notable gains.
She explained that alongside traditional lessons, new curricula are being used to expand children’s intellectual development.
Classroom improvements and better-trained teachers, she added, are helping reduce dropout rates and support broader gains in education, health, and livelihoods at the grassroots.
UNESCO Bangladesh Programme Officer (Education) Shirin Akhter, and GNB Standing Committee members Md Harunur Rashid Khan and Farzana Sharmin also addressed the event.
In his remarks, Bertin Gomez highlighted the project’s achievements, including enhanced teacher training and strong student outcomes.
He reiterated GNB’s commitment to providing an inclusive learning environment for children deprived of their basic right to education, particularly marginalised groups.
Highly trained and dedicated teachers at GNB-run schools, he said, are helping raise education levels by supporting both primary and secondary learners.
Officials from government agencies, representatives from NGOs, education partners, steering committee members, GNB and partner schools, school management committees, senior organisational staff, and journalists attended the programme.