“Once we attain Digital Bangladesh, all utility services like payment of different utility services bill, purchasing rail ticket through mobile phones, taking health services from upazila doctors at villages and providing important information about life and livelihood from the union parishads through internet would be at the door steps of the people”, she said.
The Prime Minister said we could attain the objective of building digital nation by developing human resources through modern technologies, implicating people with government activities, reaching services at the door steps of common people and enhancing production by higher technologies.
She said the main objective of the fair is to highlight the initiatives undertaken by different ministries and departments to reach the government services to the doorsteps of the people speedily, easily and at a low cost.
Referring to her party’s election pledges, Sheikh Hasina said to fulfill our commitments to build a happy and prosperous nation, we have chosen information technology as tools for bringing the “Charter of Change”
The prime minister said’ “We want to ensure good governance, transparency and accountability of the government by utilizing information technology”.
“We want people would no more move from corridor to corridor of public offices for getting services, rather services would always be available to their doorsteps”, she said.
The Prime Minister said for attaining Digital Bangladesh, we need change in our mental make-up first. At the same time we have to findout how best we could make utilization of our limited resoures by utilizing IT.
“I shall be happy if such innovation fairs are organized at divisional and distrcit levels’, she said adding that she hopes the private sectors would extend their cooperations in this regard.
Presided over by Principal Secretary to Prime Minister M. Abdul Karim, the inaugural function was also addressed by Minister of State for Science and Information & Communication Technology Architect Yafez Osman, Resident Coordinator of UNDP, Bangladesh Renata Lok Dessallien and National Project Director A21 M Nazrul Isam Khan
The UNDP-funded Access to Information (A2I) Programme under the Prime Minister’s Office and the Science and ICT Ministry are jointly organizing the fair, where 102 stalls — 82 of different ministries and departments and 20 stalls of five non-government organizations were set up.
The fair will remain open for all from 10 am to 8 pm every day.
Besides the fair, seminars on different subjects have been arranged every day. Four awards will also be given for encouraging digital initiatives.
Mentioning her government’s vision to build a digital Bangladesh by 2021, the Prime Minister said her government wants to ensure transparency and accountability at all levels of administration towards building a corruption free society by using information technology.
Sheikh Hasina said four priorities have been identified of the vision of digital Bangladesh. These priorities are to build human resources, involving people in government’s activities, reaching its service to the doorsteps of people and increasing production in industry and farmlands by using the digital technology, she added.
Laying emphasis on changing mentality to adopt the technology in daily lives, she expressed the hope that the fair would play an important role in encouraging people to be familiar with the modern technology. In this context, she asked the authorities concerned to organize such fair in district and upazila levels involving local governments to this end.
Listing her government’s endeavors, she said it has taken massive programmes to bring all union parishad offices under fibre optic network for introducing improved communications system in rural Bangladesh.
“Initially, 100 union parishad offices have been selected for connecting those with fibre optic network while more 1,000 union parishads would be brought under the network to this end within the next one year,” she said.
The Prime Minister said under the scheme all hospitals and schools would be brought under computer network to ensure health services of the people as well as making the country’s education system time befitting and modern one to cope with the present IT based world.
She said computer with wave camera and internet facilities has been provided to all upazila hospitals while 1,500 laptops were distributed among the country’s educational institutes so far towards fulfilling the government vision to make a digital Bangladesh by 2021.
Sheikh Hasina said her government will set up computer labs in all educational institutes in phases to this end. Computer labs have so far been set up in 128 upazila across the country and this would be expanded up to all upazila in phases for connecting people with communications network.
Besides, she said Community E-Centre has been set up in five upazila of the country so far and in phases all upazila would be brought under the programmes gradually.
The Prime Minister said her government has already approved ICT Policy-2009 and formulated ICT Act-2009 to expedite the process in flourishing ICT industry in the country.
Elaborating her government’s vision for expansion of IT across the country, she said it has taken a programme to set up “e-Centre for Rural Community” in 8,500 post offices in different nock and corners in Bangladesh.
She said steps have been taken to provide modern video conferencing facilities connecting cabinet, all 64 deputy commissioners, seven divisional commissioners offices with the Prime Minister’s office to facilitate communications among them.
The Prime Minister said necessary infrastructures are being built to set up Hi- Tech Park in Gazipur along with strengthening telecommunications network to bring the entire country into e-Governance.
Later, the Prime Minister inaugurated ticket selling activities of inter-city train of Bangladesh railway through mobile phone and went round of different stalls eructed in the fair premises.
Minister, advisers to the Prime Minister, IT experts, representatives of development partners and high civil and military officials were present on the occasion.
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Quelle/Source: Brunei fm, 04.03.2010
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