He was responding to a suggestion made at a roundtable for formulating an institutional framework under which the private sector will take the leadership in providing basic education while the government will work as a catalyst.

The roundtable on The Role of the Private Sector in Local Resources Mobilisation for Basic Education, jointly organised by The Daily Star and the Campaign for Popular Education (Campe), was held at Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka.

Saifur said the international community appreciated the tremendous progress Bangladesh made in basic education, including increased enrolment, especially of girl students through a stipend programme. The government is interested in allocating more resources to the sector, he added.

Representatives of different chambers, business leaders and educationists, who participated in the discussion expressed keen interest in contributing to the over all human resources development of the country.

But the attending private sector entrepreneurs identified lack of quality education and skilled teachers, poor educational infrastructure and outmoded syllabus as some major impediments to more successful basic education.

Pointing out that the private sector is actively participating in higher education including some selected areas of higher secondary and undergraduate education, the private sector leaders said they are also willing to contribute in the government's basic education programme. But, absence of an institutional framework prevented them from doing so, a number of speakers said.

They urged the government to exempt tax on donation in the education sector so that the private sector feels more encouraged to play a more proactive role.

Taking part in the discussion, Centre for Policy Dialogue Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan pointed out that ultimately the responsibility of providing basic education lies with the state.

Referring to a school set up by Delwar Hossain on his own in Tangail, he said donating money to set up schools is not enough for raising the standard of education, monitoring and supervision are also vital.

Noted educationist Prof Muzzaffer Ahmed, in his inaugural speech, said there is a shift in spending for primary education by the government to secondary education. "It is the World Bank, which forecast that enrolment in the primary education would decline due to fall in birth rate and so the bank suggested investing more on secondary education. But we do not see that decline. In fact, excluders, dropouts and repeaters are enrolling again."

Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad said, "We can establish some sort of institutional framework to enable the private sector to take the lead in investing in the basic education sector."

Abdur Rouf Choudhury, chairman of Rangs Group of Industries, said, "What we need is a powerful new generation to come in to the sector and invest and form an integrated framework with the government."

Anisur Rahmman Sinha, former president of Bangladesh Garments Manufacturer and Exporter Association (BGMEA), said, "Previously, we saw that most of the talented students came from rural areas, but now the picture has reversed. We must give more attention to education in rural areas."

Abdul Muyeed Choudhury, executive director of BRAC, said, "Private sector can evolve as a decision maker while the government acts as a catalyst."

Noted economist Professor Wahiduddin Mahmud said, "Community participation is a must to ensure quality of education. Decentralisation is also required to enable private sector to invest in the primary education."

Among others, Square Group Chairman Samson H Chowdhury, former cabinet secretary M Mujibul Huq, former secretary ANM Eusuf, ADB Country Director Toru Shibachi, American Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Aftabul Islam, Campe Director Rasheda K Chowdhury, Mahmood Hassan of Gano Sahajaya Sangstha, Abdul Hafiz Chowdhury of Rahman Rahman and Huq, Power and Participation Research Centre President Hossain Zillur Rahman, Mahmudul Alam of the World Bank and Alamgir Rahman of the BGMEA participated in the discussion moderated by The Daily Star Editor Mahfuz Anam.

Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries Presiden Abdul Awal Mintoo, Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) President Kutubuddin Ahmed, Salman Ispahani of M M Ispahani Limited, Rokia A Rahman of the MCCI, North South University Vice-Chancellor Dr Hafiz G A Siddqi, Muhammad Ibrahim of the CMES, Scholastica School Principal Yasmeen Murshed, Azim Uddin Ahmed of Southeast Bank Limited, Momena Khatun of BYSTA and Shafi Ahmed of Jahangirnagar University were also present at the discussion.