Government Agencies in Bangladesh

The Ministry of Education is the principal government education agency in the country. The Ministry is responsible for all levels of education and formulates policies and programs for the development of post-primary to higher education including madrasah, technical and vocational education. Key education agencies working under the Ministry of Education include the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS), the University Grants Commission, the National Curriculum and Textbook Board, the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, the Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB), and the Directorate of Inspection and Audit Ministry of Education.

Public spending on education was 2.2% of GDP in 2009.

In the late 1980s the government laid great emphasis on the improvement of the primary education system in an attempt to raise the rate of literacy. A scheme was, therefore, undertaken to establish one primary school for every 2,000 people in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has made significant progress in increasing access and achieving gender equity, both at the primary and secondary levels.

Major reforms undertaken by government for improving the quality of education include introduction of a unitrack curriculum in secondary education during the latter 2000s; school-based assessment at secondary level; reform of secondary school examination systems; privatisation of textbook writing and publication; reorganisation of management committees and governing bodies for non-governmental educational institutions; formation of an oversight committee for the supervision of teaching in classrooms; and strengthening teachers’ training.

The Campaign for Popular Education is a national coalition of NGOs working in the fields of literacy and non-formal education. It was established in 1991 with 15 members and in 2012 it comprised more than 1,300 organisations.
Bangladesh is one of the 35 countries implementing the UNESCO Literacy Initiative for Empowerment (2006–15), a strategic framework through which national governments, civil society, and bilateral and multilateral agencies collaborate to accelerate literacy programmes and support achievement of a 50% improvement in national adult literacy rates by 2015.