Asit Kumar Mukutmoni :
Skilled manpower is the lifeblood of a continuous developed economy and employment avoiding the sad story of losing job. Market mechanism along with the advance technology is the rival of employment but modern world and production line can never be thought without it when the population and demand for produced products of all kinds increase rapidly at all tiers. It is also related to the increase of per capita income over times.
Population is an asset but without channeling the scope of its proper utilization it turns into a tremendous liability. Unskilled population develops a situation of disguise employment crisis which seems apparently employed but actually not. It hampers the rate of production per working head, the speed, quality, working capability and efficiency of the working force which invites backwardness in the competitive market manifestation and survival. It is known that time and tide, waits for none. The parting bell rings and reminds us to be careful otherwise the time-train will be missed.
No one can stop modernization. It is an ongoing process though its cruelty snatches away the survival of many. So there is no alternative of skill development which demands a solid base of required education. The necessity of demand based training and refresher training courses time to time also need to be adjusted with the change of technology and information. The process of proper trainee selection is highly important. Unjust selection of trainees destroys money, wealth, time, efforts of the trainer and so on. It also pulls the country back. Training is a need for moving the country forward. But it should be for those who mentally feel it deeply as the way of their employment, self-employment, survival and total advancement of the family and the country.
Training must not be taken as a business in both the sides, who are receiving and who are discharging. It must not be thought in such a way that if I fail to meet the target as in the plan, punishment is waiting. Module or curricula selection as per necessity, demand and purpose is highly important. With the passing of time it demands a change to match with the advancement and coming new information including the technique of implementation. Trainee must be true to the cause in mentality. Getting scope, have time, let us go to have training, this mentality is destructive to all. On the other hand, mere collecting trainee and finish the training this or that way, it is also dangerous. Proper monitoring, supervision and analysis with comment on the performed work or result on the stake holders side are relevantly related. We have to own it in true sense with patriotic feelings. Training must not be a trait of business.
Selection of the teacher(s) must be bias less and from those who have the knack, dedication, interest, commitment and devotion. Any compromise may kill the real expectation and skilled manpower creation for capacity building by wasting time, energy and wealth, inviting a veiled collapse in the process and out-turn. That’s why proper educational quality (including technical) with committed teachers are mostly important. I am not meaning here about the higher education. How much higher educated (above HSC) people we need to meet all of our demand, need also research and analysis so that no MA, BA Degree holder youths go for applying for the post of lowest grade personnel. Professional disparity in the recruitment process cause brain drain. Negligence invites catastrophe in the long run considering our position in the knowledge index. Time has come to utilize the working capability of our people to induce the growth of our country, our economy.
A comparative analysis may be done whether our unskilled manpower is beneficial for abroad or necessary in consideration of the competitive survival of our flourishing industry and age old agriculture through cost benefit analysis when our population is over 160 million and food production and food import day by day turn costly cum clumsy. Fact is that most of them are doing there (in foreign countries) the most ordinary odd works of labourers abroad.
How much they are incoming, spending and sending to their family in the country, time has come to analyze and verify it when the labour cost of our country for the common physical work enhances a lot over time. Huge unskilled manpower doing and earning better and helping the flourishing of our economy than abroad by taking training and receiving microcredit. Moreover, there is a lot of hazards in the in working abroad considering residence, weather, food, working time and support, leaving their family and near and dear ones away. But let the excess unskilled labourer go abroad for earning foreign currency to strengthen our economy. Training will open the window to send skilled workforce abroad for earning much through a few.
Our per capita income increases around double within the last six years when our GDP rose about 6% every year which is a tremendous achievement and praiseworthy. We are using about 120 million mobile phones against 160 million people. There is competition of companies and at the same time if we can build up our industries in public or private or both in orientation, the total income and investment scope will rise to help for more investment if all the process are dealt in a single table i.e., under one-stop arrangement to avoid all complicacy. I do not like to go in detail about all these here. Production, its proper use and misuse are the main concerned arenas which prove important for progress parameter. Reduction in misuse everywhere means the maximum use of production, an encouraging parameter for development. It is supportive to maintain reasonable price and to decrease the inflation meaningfully. Training is a component deeply interrelated to that directly and indirectly.
Our huge manpower both skilled and unskilled are now highly important for the speedy progress of Bangladesh if coordinated and integrated plan and programs are managed and implemented properly. If so, attaining 8% GDP growth is possible through proper handling of DRR, CCA and education. But at every step training will play the pivotal role, within and without. If the utilization of training is microcredit based but he or she is not getting it in time, moving door to door, gradually become disappointed, then both the giving and receiving of training will be spoiled.
On the other side, if the trainee receive micro credit in time went for production but may be unable to sell the products, facing difficulty, due to low quality production or higher production cost, then it will simply backfire. But things, so far related to achievement, depend on gainful execution. All these are hindrances in creating new entrepreneur. Sometimes the implementation of training demands more amount of microcredit or credit but the loaning process is clumsy and loan amount is too small.
If someone gets chance to have many types of training this make the man restless with indecision to select which to follow and the giving of training, in most cases, ended fruitless but it is difficult to handle all these obstacles efficiently. They need all trouble solving refresher course(s) for moving onward. Efficient management to turn unskilled manpower into skilled one through training is important. But it is a complex matter which demands coordination, cooperation, elimination, selection, management, proper stepping through integrated planning and implementation. Our progress is noteworthy.
(Asit Kumar Mukutmoni is a retired Civil Servant)
