RAPID-BASIS Meeting on Bridging the Skills Gap in the Bangladesh Business Process Outsourcing Sector

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Meeting with BASIS as a RAPID-UNDP major study on the services outsourcing sector

On 29 September 2021, RAPID took part in a virtual meeting to consult with members of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS). Discussions took place on the current state of skills requirement across various services, training opportunities, brain drain, technologies, and competition in the ICT industry, as well as issues regarding academia and industry gap and potential solutions.

Industry resource persons—Ms Farhana Rahman (Senior Vice President of BASIS and CEO of UY Systems Ltd.), Mr Raisul Kabir (CEO of Brain Station 23), Mr Md Affan Kajmi (CEO of My Offer 360 Degree), and Mr Imtiaz Ilahi (MD of Graphic People Limited)—provided powerful insights into the ICT sector. They highlighted the longstanding challenges and also the emerging developments that are affecting the ICT sector.

The meeting was organised as part of a study conducted by RAPID with the support from UNDP Bangladesh Accelerator Lab. The study aims to assess the skills demand and gaps in the services outsourcing sector.

Meeting Participants:
Ms Farhana Rahman, Senior Vice President, BASIS and CEO, UY Systems Ltd.
Mr Enamul Hafiz Latifee, Joint Secretary (Research Fellow), BASIS
Mr Raisul Kabir, CEO, Brain Station 23
Mr Md Affan Kajmi, CEO, My Offer 360 Degree
Mr Imtiaz Ilahi, Managing Director, Graphic People Ltd.
Dr M Abdur Razzaque, Chairman, RAPID
Dr M Abu Eusuf, Executive Director, RAPID

ABM Omor Faruque, Assistant Professor, Department of Development Studies, University of Dhaka
Mahir Musleh, Research Economist, RAPID
Jillur Rahman, Research Fellow, RAPID
Rabiul Islam, Research Economist, RAPID