Decentralise admins
Says Akbar Ali Khan
Guests at a roundtable, 'Investment for children and government's commitment', organised by the Bangla daily Prothom Alo at its office in the capital yesterday. Photo: Prothom Alo
Akbar Ali Khan, former adviser to a caretaker government, yesterday said that administrations must be decentralised for the betterment of the poor. “As our government makes a common budget for the whole country, they cannot consider inclusive development of the poor. So, if they intend to develop the condition of the poor people, they should decentralise the administrations,” he said. He made the remarks at a roundtable on “The investment for the children and the government's commitment” organised by Bangla daily Prothom Alo at its office. Khan said the government should identify chief problems and needs of children and take initiatives to solve those strategically. Otherwise, children's development is impossible without a separate budget for them. Noted economist Dr Quazi Khaliquzzaman Ahmed said expenditure for the children should be considered an investment for the country's future rather than as cost of the government. He emphasized the need for education, sports and entertainment facilities for children's mental and physical growth. Lack of qualified primary teachers is hampering the primary education system in the country, said Information Commissioner Prof Sadeka Halim adding that political recruitment of teachers is one of the major reason for it. She also expressed concern over child rights exploitation for commercial sex products and other risky sectors. Ranjit Kumar Biswas, secretary to the social welfare ministry, said the government has taken an initiative to build at least one school in all the districts for autistic children. Dr Fahmida Khatun, head of research at the CPD, said government must remove controversies regarding the number and age of children before taking any initiative for their development. Hasanul Haque Inu, president of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), MA Mannan, MP, Kazi Marful Islam, a teacher of Development Studies Department of DU, also spoke at the roundtable, which was moderated by Abdul Quayum, joint editor of Prothom Alo. Dhaka University's Development Studies department, Save the Children, Centre for Services and Information on Disability, assisted the roundtable discussion.
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