Home ›› 23 Nov 2021 ›› Front
The government will establish 10,000 ‘Sheikh Russel Digital Labs’ to improve Bangladesh’s information and communications technology infrastructure.
The ICT division has undertaken a project titled ‘Establishing Digital Connectivity’, which is likely to be approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) today, a senior Planning Commission official told The Business Post.
Under the project, the government will establish 1,09,244 broadband, 57 specialised labs, a central cloud platform and frontier technology centre of excellence, 10 digital village stations, IT infrastructure in district and upazila complexes and training facilities.
The project aims to cover new IT infrastructure in eight divisions, 64 districts, and upazilas, including unions and villages. It also aims to make ICT services quickly accessible to people more quickly and easily by converting them into e-services.
The ICT department will implement the project within June 2025. The cost has been estimated at Tk 5,883.73 crore. The government will provide Tk 2,505.16 crore while China will give Tk 3,378.57 crore.
Mosammat Nasima Begum, a member of the social infrastructure division of the Planning Commission, said the importance of digital technology was already evident.
“Digital Bangladesh has made a significant contribution to the country’s economy and operations, especially during the coronavirus pandemic. This project needs consultants and training. This expenditure has been fixed after discussion and review. Besides, China is lending a large amount for the project,” she added.
“If the project gets Ecnec nod, over 70 per cent educational institutions will have computer labs which will enhance and speed up the expansion of computer education,” she said.
Besides, 10 digital villages, around 492 non-residential buildings, 491 upazila complexes will be expanded upward by one storey.
Field surveys will be conducted under 10 digital village stations, and 20,000 farmers will be provided with ‘Smart Sensor Devices’.
Besides, a 21-storey’ DoICT Tower’ will be built in the capital’s Purbachal to house an academy featuring modern ICT labs and facilities to nourish IT entrepreneurs.
The ICT department has already leased a three-bigha plot for the tower which will create research opportunities for the fourth industrial revolution and human resource development, according to the project proposal.
According to the Planning Commission and ICT division, it will convert government services into e-services, making them more accessible.
