Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury urged authorities to weigh government priorities, employment prospects and entrepreneurship opportunities before establishing new universities or introducing new departments and subjects. He also advised the University Grants Commission chairman against recommending unplanned university approvals. The remarks came Friday at the opening day of a two-day vice-chancellors’ dialogue under the UGC’s Higher Education Acceleration and Transformation project at BRAC CDM in Savar.

Chowdhury said higher-education curricula must align with economic needs and labour-market realities, with universities preparing students for employment and entrepreneurship rather than certificates alone. He said the government had increased education allocations despite an economic crisis and was working to raise education spending gradually to 5 percent of gross domestic product. He stressed transparent and effective use of funding for quality, research and skills.

Speakers called for stronger university-industry collaboration, practical research, curriculum updates and career support. UGC Chairman Professor Mamun Ahmed said graduate unemployment and employers’ difficulty finding skilled workers remained major challenges. He said the UGC was preparing a five-year strategy for sustainable transformation of higher education.