Home ›› 19 Jun 2022 ›› Front
Bangladeshi students’ study abroad payments have risen by 128.65 per cent in the last six years, with the figure reaching $343.9 million till April in the current fiscal year, the Bangladesh Bank data shows.
Between FY17 and FY22, $1.32 billion (Tk 12,144 crore) was sent via legal channels. Experts said the actual figures would be higher as there was no data on money sent through illegal channels.
Study abroad payments have gradually increased over the years – $150.4 million in FY17, $170.7 million in FY18, $196.1 million in FY19, $218 million in FY20, and $243.1 million in FY21, according to the central bank data.
Former governor of the Bangladesh Bank Salehuddin Ahmed told The Business Post Bangladeshi students were increasingly going abroad for studies due to a lack of quality education here.
“It is normal that such a huge number of students are studying abroad, but it will negatively impact our economy if they do not come back and contribute to national development as skilled human resources,” he said.
He further said the central bank should scrutinise whether study abroad payments were being sent for education purposes only.
Executive Director of the Bangladesh Bank Md Serajul Islam said study abroad payments were being sent via banking channels by complying with proper guidelines.
He said fees were being sent through some banks, including Standard Chartered Bank, BRAC Bank, and Eastern Bank, adding there was no chance to send money for purposes other than education. The central bank spokesperson also said more Bangladeshis were going abroad for studies than the past as affordability had increased.
“There was a time when Bangladeshi students would depend on scholarships to study at foreign universities, but people now have money to send their children abroad. That is why both the number of such students and study abroad payments are rising,” he explained.
How many students go abroad?
Around 60,000 Bangladeshi students go abroad every year on average despite higher education scopes increasing in the country over the years. The number fell in the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, at least 44,338 Bangladeshi students went abroad in 2021, up from 24,112 in 2015.
The US is the top favourite among the destinations where 8,122 Bangladeshi students went in 2021, followed by Malaysia (6,904) and Australia (6,191).
Besides, 3,735 students went to Canada in 2021, 2,920 to Germany, 2,645 to the UK, 2,436 to Japan, 2,258 to India, 1,121 to Korea, and 1,062 to Saudi Arabia.
The preference to study at good universities in some Asian countries, including Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and China, has also been growing among Bangladeshi pupils in recent years.
Why students prefer foreign education
Students from affluent families and English medium backgrounds mostly go abroad after completing their ‘O’ level or ‘A’ level degrees, while those belonging to the middle class are typically opting for post-graduation degrees abroad mostly on scholarships.
Academics blame the quality of Bangladeshi education for this. They have also mentioned other reasons, such as inadequate higher education opportunities and poor employment prospects in the country as well as stiff competition in the job market.
Good governance, and bright career prospects in European, and Latin American countries are largely motivating affluent families to send their offspring to foreign countries for higher studies. The English medium culture in Bangladesh is also alienating the students from mainstream life style of Bangladesh, as most of them often find them misfit in society, family gatherings and jobs market, parents have opined.
Lack of quality education and renowned universities in the country are other major reasons for increasing number of youths of affluent families leaning to foreign universities.
University Grants Commission former chairman Prof Abdul Mannan told The Business Post students were going abroad to have better qualifications, develop skills, and improve job prospects.
The number of such students was increasing fast also because of Bangladesh’s overall progress, he said.
“But there is also a downside as some guardians are laundering money in the name of paying study abroad fees,” he added.
Reluctance to return
Academics say many meritorious students do not come back to Bangladesh after completing studies due to a lack of good job prospects here.
This brain drain is seriously impacting the country, they say. Prof Md Gulam Faruque, principal of the Government Teachers Training College in Dhaka, told The Business Post students were going abroad for education either on scholarships or using their own funds.
“Most of them do not come back as they get various facilities in foreign countries, including social security and good jobs. These are absent in Bangladesh,” he added.
