The twenty-first century is witnessing an unprecedented technological transformation. Machines are rapidly reshaping the world of work, driven by breakthroughs in generative artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, automation, and data-driven systems.
These technologies are revolutionizing production by boosting productivity, reducing costs, and enabling large-scale efficiency. In smart factories powered by AI, the Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics, machine-to-machine communication dominates, while human workers are increasingly confined to supervisory or peripheral roles.
For a densely populated country like Bangladesh, this shift raises urgent economic and social concerns -- particularly around employment for its large youth population. If automation advances without a parallel strategy for workforce preparation, the risks of structural unemployment and social instability will only intensify.
From industry 4.0 to industry 5.0
Against this backdrop, a new global paradigm is gaining momentum: Industry 5.0. Moving beyond the technology-centric logic of industry 4.0, this approach reasserts the central role of humans within production systems.
Industry 5.0 promotes human-centric automation, sustainability, and ethical technology use -- where machines are designed to enhance, not replace, human capabilities. Creativity, ethical judgement, contextual understanding, and complex decision-making -- distinctly human attributes -- are once again recognised as indispensable for resilient and inclusive growth.
However, this transition requires a more adaptive and versatile workforce. The skills in demand now go well beyond narrow technical expertise.
Skills for an uncertain future
Critical thinking, creativity, complex problem-solving, collaboration, emotional intelligence, and resilience -- grounded in lifelong learning -- are becoming defining competencies of the modern economy. Unlike specific technical skills that can quickly become obsolete, these adaptive capabilities allow workers to remain relevant amid continuous technological change.
Countries that invest strategically in such human capital will be best positioned to benefit from the shift. Bangladesh, however, remains only partially aligned even with the previous industry 4.0.
Many of its industries continue to rely heavily on low-cost labour, with limited adoption of automation or advanced technologies. While this model may offer short-term economic gains, it undermines long-term productivity, global competitiveness, and the creation of quality employment in a technology-driven world.
Why higher education reform is unavoidable
Given Bangladesh’s slow pace of industrial automation and its large youth demographic, the country must urgently rethink how economic development can be sustained while meaningfully integrating young people into an evolving industrial landscape.
In this context, higher education reform is no longer an academic debate -- it is a national policy imperative. Bangladesh does not simply need more graduates. It needs an educated, adaptable workforce.
Expanding employment horizons
Beyond traditional manufacturing, significant employment opportunities are emerging in ICT-enabled fields such as software development, embedded systems, data analytics, industrial IoT, cybersecurity, and cloud services.
Additional growth potential lies in infrastructure development, renewable energy and smart grids, environmental compliance, research and development, applied innovation, digital finance, logistics, e-commerce, entrepreneurship, biotechnology, health innovation, climate resilience, and sustainable agriculture -- provided graduates are adequately prepared.
Aligning higher education with industrial transformation must therefore be treated as a strategic national priority.
The limits of the current education system
Universities should prepare graduates for sectors where human skills complement emerging technologies, rather than for fully automated environments that offer limited employment opportunities.
Yet Bangladesh’s higher education system remains constrained by outdated structures. Curricula are often disconnected from national development priorities, while assessment practices -- particularly in public universities -- continue to rely heavily on high-stakes final examinations that reward memorization over understanding, creativity, or problem-solving.
Teaching methods in both public and private universities are still dominated by the traditional “chalk-and-talk” approach, leaving graduates ill-equipped with the adaptability, teamwork, and applied skills demanded by modern workplaces.
Learning from global practice
Globally, universities facing similar challenges have responded by embedding experiential learning, project-based learning (PBL), and problem-based learning into their curricula.
These approaches expose students to real-world problems, encourage interdisciplinary thinking, and bridge the gap between theory and practice. Industry-linked projects, internships, and community-based problem-solving initiatives should carry academic credit and be supported by robust quality assurance mechanisms.
A national choice
Bangladesh now stands at a crossroads. One path continues to rely on outdated educational models and low-cost labour, risking marginalization in a world moving rapidly towards intelligent automation.
The other embraces the human-centric promise of industry 5.0, investing decisively in an education system that nurtures adaptability, creativity, and ethical judgement.
The choice we make will shape not only our economic competitiveness, but also our social stability.
The time to act
The moment to act is now -- through curriculum reform, stronger industry-academia partnerships, and a national commitment to skills over rote learning.
Bangladesh’s demographic dividend will not be determined by how many young people it has, but by how well they are prepared to work with the machines of tomorrow -- rather than be replaced by them.
Dr MM Shahidul Hassan is Distinguished Professor, Eastern University and Former Vice-Chancellor, East West University.
