Khaleda Zia’s historic contribution to higher education recalled in meeting with Tarique Rahman

Staff Reporter :

The leadership of the Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB) has expressed profound grief and condolences over the passing of Begum Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh’s three-time former Prime Minister and Chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

During a meeting on Sunday, at the BNP’s Gulshan office with BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, an eight-member delegation led by APUB President Sabur Khan and General Secretary Istiaque Abedin paid tribute to Begum Zia’s historic contributions to the country’s higher education sector.

They highlighted her visionary leadership in 1992, when the National Parliament approved the policy for establishing private universities for the first time-a landmark decision that revolutionised Bangladesh’s higher education landscape.

This initiative has enabled over 400,000 students today to pursue internationally recognized curricula, while bolstering human resource development, job creation, and global connectivity.

The hour-long discussion covered the current state of higher education in Bangladesh, the role of private universities, challenges, and opportunities.

Tarique Rahman emphasized opportunities in content creation, freelancing, and online trading as foreign exchange earners for educated youth, professionals, and entrepreneurs. He also outlined plans to establish a modern high-tech city to support these activities.

The meeting was attended by BNP National Standing Committee member Salahuddin Ahmed; APUB Vice Chairman K.B.M. Main Uddin Chisty; Aziz Al Kayser, Chairman of the North South University Trust Board; Tamura Hasan Abed, Chairman of the BRAC University Trust Board; M.A. Kashem, member of the North South University Trust Board; and Javed Hosein, member of the Independent University-Bangladesh Trust Board.