DHAKA: The government has a plan of creating 10 lakh job opportunities in the Information Technology (IT) sector within next four years by increasing one crore internet users per year.

The State Minister for ICT affairs Zunaid Ahmed Palak made the disclosure Friday morning while addressing a seminar Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban at University of Dhaka (DU) in city.

Policy Research Centre Bangladesh (PRC-BD) was the organizer of the seminar titled ‘Asian Governance: Paradoxes of Development’.

Palak was also conferred with the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Award for his remarkable contribution in Information, Communication and Technology sector.

Dhaka University vice chancellor (VC) Professor Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique handed over the prize to the state minister before the seminar.

The state minister said the government also planned to add at least one percent in GDP through exporting ICT goods by this time.

Palak further said the ICT ministry has also started working with some key factors including building enough IT-based infrastructures, developing human resources and providing safe ICT network to make Bangladesh digital.

He also informed the audiences that the government is currently working to bring all the upazilas under internet coverage by 2015 while the unions by 2016.

Minister also said the ICT ministry has trained around 15,000 youths on freelancing in the last 10 months under ‘Learning and Earning Project’ and it will train another 55,000 by next two years.

The State Minister for Youth and Sports Biren Sikder MP was the chief guest of the program that was presided over by Policy Research Center Bangladesh Chairman Dr Akbaruddin Ahmed.

BDST: 1727 HRS, DEC 05, 2014