Bangladesh has taken a significant step toward advancing gender equality in skills development with the approval of the Gender and Skills Action Plan 2025–2027 at the second meeting of the National Steering Committee of the Gender and Skills Taskforce. The meeting, held in Dhaka, marked an important milestone in strengthening a more inclusive and gender-responsive technical and vocational education and training system.
Chaired by the Honourable Adviser to the Ministry of Education, Professor Chowdhury Rafiqul Abrar, the meeting brought together senior representatives from 23 ministries and departments, employers’ organizations and development partners. The International Labour Organization provided technical support through its ProGRESS Project, with funding from Global Affairs Canada, underscoring strong international cooperation behind the initiative.
In his opening remarks, Professor Abrar emphasized the importance of maintaining the Gender and Skills Taskforce as a high-level coordination platform to promote girls’ participation in education and enhance women’s economic empowerment. He highlighted that transforming TVET systems is critical to overcoming long-standing structural and gender-specific barriers that restrict women’s access to decent work opportunities.
Officials from the Technical and Madrasah Education Division outlined the vision and institutional framework of the taskforce, describing it as a flagship initiative designed to guide coordinated action across government institutions. The taskforce aims to transform TVET institutions, skills systems and workplaces into environments that are both gender-responsive and gender-equal, thereby strengthening women’s participation in the labour market.
Progress made since the first steering committee meeting was reviewed, including the formal establishment of the taskforce through a government order, updates to its membership and the organization of inter-ministerial planning processes that contributed to the development of the Action Plan. Participants also noted progress in related policy reviews, technical guidelines and awareness initiatives addressing gender equality and safe working environments.
The Gender and Skills Action Plan 2025–2027 was presented and discussed in detail, focusing on key challenges such as unsafe and discriminatory workplaces, limited opportunities for women in technical fields, skills mismatches and gaps in labour market data. Discussions highlighted evidence that women can perform strongly in non-traditional and technical sectors when given adequate training and employment opportunities.
The National Steering Committee unanimously approved the Action Plan, signaling a collective commitment to advancing gender equality in skills development and employment. The approval was widely recognized as a major step toward more coordinated and impactful action across institutions.
The International Labour Organization reaffirmed its continued support, noting that while Bangladesh has experienced strong economic growth, employment generation has not kept pace, with women facing disproportionate challenges. The ILO welcomed the taskforce as a timely response and emphasized the importance of implementing existing policies, strengthening employer engagement and ensuring that skills development efforts lead to decent jobs for women and inclusive economic growth.
