CA orders action against fake skill certificates
Staff Reporter:
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Sunday directed the relevant authorities to take effective steps to prevent forgery of skill development training certificates and the use of fake credentials to protect Bangladesh’s reputation in the global labour market.
He said Bangladeshi workers are in high demand internationally, but fraud related to skills certification is undermining confidence in the country’s workforce.
Warning that a loss of trust among foreign employers could render all skill development initiatives ineffective, the Chief Adviser stressed that such irregularities must be stopped immediately. Prof Yunus made the remarks while presiding over a meeting of the Governing Body of the National Skills Development Authority (NSDA) at his office in Tejgaon, according to the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing.
Emphasising the importance of building a strong national brand, he said employers should have confidence that workers from Bangladesh will perform well. He noted that safeguarding credibility in skills certification is essential to sustaining overseas employment opportunities.
Established in 2018, the NSDA Governing Body held its second meeting on Saturday, the first having taken place in 2022. Prof Yunus said the authority provides a strong framework for developing skilled human resources aligned with the needs of both domestic and international labour markets.
With growing overseas demand for Bangladeshi workers, he added, the NSDA’s role will become increasingly important.
Expressing optimism, the Chief Adviser said the NSDA’s initiative to introduce a unified standard certification system across all training institutions would play a key role in preventing fraud and improving transparency.
Referring to the country’s youth, Prof Yunus said the younger generation is creative and full of potential, and stressed the need to open up opportunities for them.
He also underlined the importance of coordination and necessary initiatives to ensure private entrepreneurs can operate in a transparent and effective manner.
The meeting reviewed the implementation progress of decisions taken at the previous Governing Body meeting and decided to establish an integrated skills ecosystem. Under this system, uniform curricula and standards will be ensured for training programmes run by different ministries.
Once fully implemented, the system is expected to enhance the quality and international credibility of certificates, reduce wastage of public funds, and enable more effective planning to meet industrial labour demand.
The Governing Body also approved NSDA’s long-term goals to address global challenges following Bangladesh’s graduation from least developed country (LDC) status, including skills gap analysis in emerging sectors and alignment of national qualifications with international standards.
Senior advisers, secretaries, and officials from relevant ministries attended the meeting.