Prepare youth to face challenges of emerging world order: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has called for the necessity of international initiatives for future generations so they can prepare themselves for the upcoming world.

"That is what we expect from international people, communities and organisations," she said in response to a question immediately after emerging from the plenary session of the two-day "World of Work Summit: Social Justice for All" which took place on Wednesday in the Swiss city of Geneva.

At the summit, which is a high-level forum for global voices to address the need for increased, coordinated and coherent action in support of social justice, Sheikh Hasina said "I feel that that the International community needs to put social justice at the heart of the international development agenda like SDGs."

In this connection, she mentioned that in Bangladesh there is a massive social safety net programme, saying "It is for labours, farmers, aged people or old aged people, students. Even the working mother or lactating mother and disabled people."

The government (in Bangladesh) is giving them allowances, said the Prime Minister, adding, "We have created social safety net in our humble way. But I think that it should be in a massive way. And ILO can take an initiative and the international community should come forward to assist people to ensure that no one is left behind."

She also reiterated her call that there can be no lasting peace or sustainable development without social justice.

Another thing Sheikh Hasina noted is that the world is changing, new technology is coming, and the fourth industrial revolution is offing. "What we want is that none should lose their job."

In this regard, she said education is needed to create job opportunities. "Everybody must be educated through their digital devices and learn how to use them," she added.

For this purpose, she stressed the need of priority to provide training in the new technology "so the people should become skilled, and that is what we are doing in our country."

The government is giving education to them (future generation), she said, adding, "We've digital laboratories and computer laboratories from school level, then the training and incubation centres. Young generations get their training and we are preparing our people."

/KN/