Primary Education Development: Five Ongoing Projects Underway, Says Education Minister

Education and Primary & Mass Education Minister Dr. A N M Ehsan-ul-Haque Milon has stated that a total of five ongoing projects are being implemented under the Directorate of Primary Education to improve primary education across the country. These initiatives focus on enhancing the quality of primary education, upgrading infrastructure, and bringing out-of-school children into the education system.

He made the remarks during the question-answer session on the second day of the first session of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad (Parliament) today, Sunday (15 March).

The minister listed the five projects as follows:

• Fourth Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP-4), running from July 2018 to June 2026.
• Demand-Based Government Primary School Development Project (Phase 1), from 2016 to 2026.
• Establishment and Infrastructure Development of Government Primary Schools in Dhaka Metropolitan and Purbachal Project, from January 2020 to June 2027.
• Pre-Primary and Primary Education Improvement Project in Cox’s Bazar and Bandarban Districts and Brahmanbaria (Bancharampur) and Noakhali, running from July 2024 to June 2027.
• Primary School Feeding Project in 150 Upazilas, from January 2025 to December 2027.

Additionally, through the Non-Formal Education Board, effective literacy and practical skill development courses at pre-vocational level are being implemented in 58 upazilas across the country. Most recently, the Alternative Learning Opportunity for Out-of-School Children (ALOSC) project—one in each of the 64 districts—has been approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on 25 January 2026. This project will run from January 2026 to December 2028.

Earlier, the first session of the 13th Parliament began on Thursday. On that day, Prime Minister and Leader of the House Tarique Rahman delivered the opening speech. Veteran politician and MP Dr. Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain was unanimously elected as the presiding member. Under his chairmanship, the election of the new Speaker and Deputy Speaker was completed.

Major (Retd.) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed (Bir Bikrom) took oath as Speaker and Barrister Kaiser Kamal as Deputy Speaker. President Mohammed Shahabuddin administered their oaths in a ceremony held at the President’s Office at noon.

The new Speaker, Major (Retd.) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, presented the condolence motion. Discussions were held on former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia and the martyrs of the July mass uprising. Following tradition, President Mohammed Shahabuddin then delivered his address to the House.