Bring culture, tourism ministries under one umbrella: Farooki
Entertainment Report :
Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, adviser to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, has called
for merging the culture and tourism ministries to ensure better coordination.
As a special guest at the National Film Conference 2025 at Dhaka University’s Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban on Wednesday, Farooki remarked.
During his speech, Farooki said, “Our ministries are divided in a rather peculiar manner. You will notice this in former colonial countries.
The culture and tourism ministries in Korea, Iran, and Italy are not separate; they operate as one. We, too, need to bring the entire cultural industry under the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.”
Organised by the Bangladesh Film Students’ Association (BFSA) under the theme ‘Reforming Cinema, Changing Nation,’ the event saw the participation of over 500 individuals, including film students, academics, filmmakers, journalists, industry professionals and actors.
The stakeholders have called for the formation of a dedicated ministry for film affairs within the next three months under the current interim government.
They argued that running the film industry solely under the Ministry of Information has become increasingly challenging, as coordinating with multiple ministries has led to administrative complications.
Farooki further stated, “You are demanding a separate ministry for cinema. Practically, this will not happen. However, I believe we will at least set things in motion before we leave so that the next government can properly advance the cultural industry. The entire cultural sector should be brought under one umbrella.”
“As an adviser to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, I should have access to essential data – the number of cinematographers currently working, the number unable to find work, the number of existing cinema halls, and the number that have shut down. All this information should be consolidated in one place.
The entire cultural industry should be under a single umbrella. However, for whatever reason, that is not the case. As a result, it becomes extremely difficult for us to take coordinated initiatives,” Farooki exclaimed.
The cultural affairs adviser believes that many issues could be resolved if proposals were carefully assessed and implemented. However, that has not been achieved so far.
He added, “We will present some policy-level proposals to the cabinet. The Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism must be merged.
Except in former colonial countries, you will not find these two ministries functioning separately anywhere else. When you create something that enriches a nation’s culture, it benefits tourism.
Likewise, developing tourism supports culture. Take South Korea’s BTS as an example. The entire framework should be unified under one umbrella-that is the proposal we intend to make.”