The greatest wealth of a nation is neither its geographical size, nor its natural resources, but its skilled young human resources. And, this is truer in a highly populated, natural resource-scarce country like Bangladesh. There are three distinctive ways in which young human resources of a country contribute to its economic development. First, the skills and capabilities of the youth can effectively and successfully use other means of production. In the absence of human resources, the mere presence of land, machinery, and raw materials is nothing but a collection of some innate things. Second, in the contemporary development process, appropriately skilled young human resources are needed to properly use the emerging technologies coming out of the digital revolution and artificial intelligence. Third, the inventive power, creativity, and innovation of the young people are critical for quantitative and qualitative economic transformations of a country. 

Today, the youth labour force in Bangladesh is about 27 million, representing 36 per cent of the total labour force of the country. About 2 million young people are unemployed, accounting for 79 per cent of the total unemployed population. About 8 million young people are not in education, employment, or training (NEET) - a lost potential for the country. Joblessness among the university graduates is on the rise - from 0.25 million in 2013 to 0.90 million in 2023, a more than three-fold increase. In Bangladesh, about 9 lakh young people with university degrees are jobless. Furthermore, during the past 12 years, the number of unemployed university graduates in Bangladesh has inflated by more than 4 times - from 2 lakhs in 2013 to 9 lakhs now. As the total number of unemployed people in the country is about 27 lakhs, one in every three unemployed people is a university graduate. 

The employability of Bangladeshi university graduates critically hinges on the discipline that they have pursued at the university level. For example, while the jobless rate among Political Science university graduates has been found to be 23 per cent, the comparable rate among the English graduates is only 0.17 per cent. In the Bangladesh economy, there is a delinking between higher education and the employment of young people. The higher education system of Bangladesh in 2022 has produced 7 lakh university graduates. But every year, the Bangladesh economy can absorb about 3 lakh university graduates. When supply is more than twice that of demand, unemployment is sure to occur. The incidence of high unemployment among the university graduates is also a reflection of the phenomenon of jobless growth in the Bangladesh economy. Over the past years, the economy has grown, but it has not produced sufficient jobs in the economy.  For example, during the decade of 2013-2024, the industrial growth was 10 per cent, but 1.4 million jobs were lost during this period. 

It must be kept in mind that the world of work, the nature of work and its modus operandi have been changing quite fast. One driving force for such changes is of course digital revolution, but the other is the structural changes in the global manufacturing and the services sectors. As a result, newer demands are being created for diverse professional knowledge and skills. Under such circumstance, people with skills and resources to use technology and create value can thrive. Globally, 133 million new high-skill jobs have emerged by 2024, but 75 million jobs might have been displaced by automation and new technologies. Among the new roles that are expected to experience increasing demand are data scientists and analysts, e-commerce and social media specialists, training and development experts, innovation managers, AI and machine learning specialists, big data specialists, information security analysts, and process automation experts. Undoubtedly, in the future world of work, new forms of human resources would be needed. Given that scenario, different countries have been remodelling their entire education system. They are refining their academic programme, syllabuses, teaching and learning methods - emphasising on science, technology, engineering and medicine-bases education (STEM).  In China, 40 per cent of those who are graduating are STEM graduates. The relevant figure for India is 30 per cent. In the contemporary world, human resource development emphasises on five ‘C’s - cognitive skill, communication, connectivity, collaboration and coordination. 

Under such circumstances, a critical question is: how would Bangladeshi youths compete in the world of the 21st century? In the context of the future world of world, this question is extremely important and relevant for Bangladesh. In global comparison, Bangladesh ranked 113th out of 141 countries in the Global Knowledge Index 2024. In the Global Innovation Index, it ranked 106th out of 133 countries. The top five skills rising in demand in Bangladesh are: teamwork and leadership skills (93 per cent), analytical skills (89 per cent), technological literacy (81 per cent), critical thinking and problem-solving skills (70 per cent), and creative thinking (63 per cent).

Our higher educational structures and university systems have been lagging behind the demand for newer knowledge and skills. Given that in tomorrow’s world, the Bangladeshi youths will have to compete not only with their peers inside the country, but also with the youths of the outside world, the following issues must be stressed. First, an assessment profile must be prepared as to what kind of skills are currently being developed in Bangladesh, with an identification of where there are opportunities and where deficits exist. In preparing such an assessment, the ongoing and upcoming human resource demand of domestic entrepreneurs must be kept in mind. A comprehensive list of future job opportunities that may be coming up in the outside world, needs to be prepared. In that context, the incidence of digital evolution must be kept in mind. Along with that, it should be identified as to what kinds of skills would be needed for those job opportunities. Taking all these factors into account, a human resource plan for the country should be formulated and aligned with the overall national plan.

Second, an evaluation must be done on the educational structure of the country - academic programmes, syllabuses, teaching and learning methods, physical and educational facilities and so on. The objective of this assessment would be to determine whether the current educational system of the country can meet its human resource demand as outlined in the human resource plan.

Third, in light of this background, the entire educational system must be overhauled, in which information technology as well as artificial intelligence should be included. In developing such an educational structure, on the one hand, the focus should be on the history, culture, and heritage of Bangladesh, but on the other, it should also draw on the experiences and achievements of other countries.

Fourth, in order to make human resource development effective, necessary training must be pursued continuously to ensure that the knowledge through education, and skills built so far are up to date, modern, timely and relevant. Such training is necessary not only for those who are in jobs, but also for teachers and trainers.  In education, the academic programmes, educational means and equipment have been rapidly changing. Therefore, the knowledge and experiences of the outside world can also play an effective role in these areas. 

Fifth, specific programmes may be undertaken to improve skills. These include strengthening industry-academic partnerships, developing on-the-job mentorship, organising affordable inhouse training, offering skill-based incentives and bonuses, offering language training programmes, utilising government skill development programmes, and partnering with local NGOs and training providers. Special attention must be paid to persons with disabilities. 

Sixth, the above framework for human resource development requires regular monitoring, close assessments and objective evaluations.  On the basis of the results obtained, the human resource development framework needs reviews from time to time. Such a review may lead to and result in changes, extensions and refinements of the framework. 

Seventh, over the past 25 years, the education budget of Bangladesh has always been less than 2 per cent of GDP, and in 2025, it stands at 1.7 per cent of GDP. Similarly, during the same period, the health budget of the country has always been less than 1 per cent of GDP. In contrast, India spends 5 per cent of its GDP on education and 4 per cent of its GDP on health. In Vietnam, the education expenditure GDP ratio is 4 per cent and the health GDP ratio is 5 per cent. Bangladesh should spend 4 per cent to 6 per cent of its GDP on education and 5 per cent to 7 per cent of its GDP on health. 

The world has been changing, and so are societies and humans.  Changes have also been occurring in human aspirations and expectations. As a result, the demands for human resources and their supplies have also been changing. Bangladesh must be ready so that in those changed contexts, it can effectively use its one and the unique wealth - its young human resources. The country should seize that opportunity, as its young people hold the key to our future progress, achievements, and development. 

Selim Jahan is the former director of the Human Development Report Office under the United Nations Development Programme and lead author of the Human Development Report.

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