Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan said young people’s drive to develop skills should not be confined to individual employment or securing jobs, but should be linked to national interests and economic potential. He made the remarks on Thursday at the “From Skill to Opportunity” job fair at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre. The event was organised by the Eco-Social Development Organization, with support from ChildFund Korea and Educo.

Swapan said skills development is important, but producing workers only for existing jobs is insufficient. He stressed the equal importance of creating new jobs and expanding the labour market, saying these depend on economic, industrial and production policies as well as political leadership and policymaking.

He cited an initiative during the rule of martyred President Ziaur Rahman that connected Bangladesh’s workforce with modern garment-sector skills through knowledge and technology from South Korea. The minister called for coordinated efforts by the state, entrepreneurs, industries, banks and policymakers to create employment fields. He also urged institutions to include ethics, philosophy and awareness of political and social realities in skills and employment-oriented curricula.