The Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship Centre of the University of Dhaka today convened an international policy seminar titled “Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Educational Institutions in Bangladesh”.

The half-day seminar, held at the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban, brought together senior policymakers, university leadership, development partners and international experts under one platform to advance Bangladesh’s entrepreneurship education agenda.

The event was organised under the Creative Bangladesh Project, a government-to-government initiative between Bangladesh and the Republic of Korea.

The project is being implemented by the ICE Centre with support from KOICA Bangladesh, the University Grants Commission and the Ministry of Education.

Dr Aditi Shams, associate professor at the Department of International Business of the University of Dhaka and deputy project director of the Creative Bangladesh Project, delivered the welcome remarks.

Professor Dr Mohamad Al-Forkan, vice-chancellor of the University of Chittagong, addressed the seminar as the chief guest.

He said a nourishing entrepreneurial ecosystem must be created so that students can think beyond conventional boundaries and develop a problem-solving mindset.

Dr Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, treasurer and vice-chairman of the ICE Centre at the University of Dhaka, chaired both sessions.

He highlighted the emergence of female entrepreneurs in the economy and said policies facilitating the adoption of fintech need to address the growing number of female entrepreneurs in the country to be truly inclusive.

Presentations on the state of entrepreneurship development in higher educational institutions were delivered by Dae Jin Derik Kim, project manager of PMC, KPC and TUK Consortium, KOICA, and Md Rashedur Rahman, founding executive director of the ICE Centre and project director of the Creative Bangladesh Project.

Md Rashedur Rahman highlighted the inevitable role of public universities in creating an innovation-driven entrepreneurial ecosystem for Bangladesh, which is the vision of the Creative Bangladesh Project.

“The University of Dhaka, as the apex institution, has both the responsibility and the opportunity to model this change and inspire adoption across the entire higher education system to move beyond producing graduates only for employment to developing graduates to create opportunities for themselves and many others,” he said.

He urged all public and private universities in Bangladesh to institutionalise entrepreneurship education to create a multiplier effect at the national level.

Special guest addresses were delivered by KOICA Bangladesh Deputy Country Director Junsu Kim and Secondary and Higher Education Division Additional Secretary Bodrun Nahar, ndc.

They highlighted the government’s commitment to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship through higher educational institutions.

Hosna Ferdous Sumi, senior private sector specialist at the World Bank’s Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation Global Practice, joined the stakeholder discussions as one of the special guests.

She highlighted the need to institutionalise the outcomes of such projects so that an entrepreneurial ecosystem is not only built, but also sustained.

Fintech in 2026: thematic session

A dedicated thematic session titled “Fintech in 2026 – from Disruption to Infrastructure” was held as the second session of the seminar.

Gwang Hee Won delivered the keynote address on the evolving fintech landscape.

The session featured open-floor discussions and remarks from a diverse group of discussants representing Bangladesh Bank, the private sector, academic institutions and international organisations.

The discussion explored how fintech can serve as a driver of youth entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.

About the Creative Bangladesh Project

The Creative Bangladesh Project focuses on strengthening entrepreneurship education across universities in Bangladesh through curriculum reform, faculty capacity building, incubation support and multi-stakeholder collaboration.

Partner universities include BUET, Bangabandhu Medical University, Bangladesh Agricultural University, the University of Rajshahi, the University of Chittagong and KUET.

The project is approved by ECNEC and implemented in partnership with the University Grants Commission and the Ministry of Education.