Staff Reporter:
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman yesterday asked the authorities concerned to assess the feasibility of reintroducing universal stipends for female students from Class VI to the undergraduate level.
He gave the directive at a meeting of the Prime Minister’s Education Assistance Trust at the Bam-gladesh Secretariat yesterday afternoon.
The meeting stressed preparing a clear proposal analyzing the possible cost, number of beneficiar-ies, implementation mechanism, and expected social and educational impacts of reinstating the universal stipend program for girls.
The Prime Minister was also briefed in detail about the ongoing activities, objectives and goals of the Education Assistance Trust, including its role in preventing dropout by providing financial as-sistance to students throughout their educational journey.
The meeting also discussed providing stipends to boys based on merit and eligibility to encourage them to continue their education.
The meeting reviewed the impact and achievements of the universal stipend programme for girls introduced during the tenure of former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.
The Prime Minister stressed that food supplied to students must be nutritious, safe and of high quality, and that there should be no compromise on the issue.
The Prime Minister directed that pilot projects of the two approaches be launched in two separate districts to assess their effectiveness, feasibility and potential outcomes.
Education Minister Dr. ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Education and Spokesperson Mahdi Amin, Education Secretary Abdul Khaleque, Prime Minister’s Additional Press Secretary Atikur Rahman Ruman and relevant officials attended the meeting.
