A Correspondent
Cumilla: Prime Minister’s Adviser on Education and spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office Mahdi Amin yesterday said that the government is giving the highest priority to sports alongside education and is taking initiatives to make sports an integral part of the education system.
“The government’s goal is to connect students with sports from the grassroots to the national level and make sports an inseparable part of education,” he said.
He made the remarks while speaking as the special guest at the opening ceremony of the 53rd Summer National Sports Competition at Bhasha Shoinik Shaheed Dhirendranath Datta Stadium here.
Mentioning that the elected government has a clear vision to give greater importance to sports in the country’s education system, he said, “As part of this initiative, sports will be counted as a subject from Class IV starting next year.”
He said this year’s Summer National Sports Competition has been organized on a large scale to achieve that objective.
Nearly 30,000 schools, madrasas and technical education institutions across the country are taking part, with students from Classes VI to X participating in four events at the preliminary stage.
Mahdi Amin also said the government wants sports to receive institutional recognition not only as a form of entertainment but also as a profession in the future.
“We hope the students of Bangladesh will further enhance the country’s reputation internationally through their talent, skills and creativity,” he said.
Referring to the Prime Minister’s directive, he said steps have been taken to make sports an essential component of the education system.
The national competition is an important step towards achieving that goal, and the initiative will continue in the future.
Speaking about the Prime Minister’s Gold Cup Football Tournament, Mahdi Amin said plans are under-way to organise the tournament on a large scale. Such initiatives, he said, will play an important role in encouraging interest in sports and developing the talents of students across the country.
The competition was organised by the Bangladesh National School, Madrasa and Technical Education Sports Association under the overall management of the Cumilla Education Board.
Education and Primary and Mass Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Hoque Milon attended the event as the chief guest.
Housing and Public Works Minister Zakaria Taher and Cumilla-10 constituency lawmaker Md Mobasher Alam Bhuiyan were also present, among others.
The event was chaired by the Director General of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, Bangladesh, Dhaka, Prof Dr Khan Moinuddin Al Mahmud Sohel.
Students from schools, madrasas and technical education institutions under various education boards across Bangladesh are participating in the 53rd Summer National Sports Competition.
