India and Bangladesh Strengthen Collaboration in Public Administration and Capacity Building

New Delhi: In a significant step towards bolstering bilateral cooperation in public administration, a high-level online meeting was held between V. Srinivas, Secretary of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India, and senior officials from the Ministry of Public Administration of Bangladesh. The meeting saw the participation of Rectors (Secretaries) from four major Capacity Building Institutions of Bangladesh, including Sukesh Kumar Sarker, Director General (Secretary) of the National Academy for Planning and Development (NAPD), and additional senior officials.

The Bangladeshi delegation included Md. Ashraf Uddin, Rector (Secretary) of the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre (BPATC); Dr. Md. Omar Faruque, Rector (Secretary) of the Bangladesh Civil Service Administration Academy (BCSAA); Dr. Md. Shahidullah, Rector (Secretary) of the National Academy for Development Administration (NADA); and Dr. M. Ziaul Haque, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Public Administration. The Indian delegation also included N.B.S. Rajput, Joint Secretary, DARPG, and senior officials from the National Centre of Good Governance (NCGG) and the High Commission of India to Bangladesh.

The meeting focused on enhancing capacity-building initiatives and fostering stronger ties in public administration. Key discussion points included:

Conducting Capacity Building Programs: Plans were discussed for faculty members of various Capacity Building Institutions under the Ministry of Public Administration of Bangladesh.

Senior Executive Development Program: Development of programs aimed at senior executives to enhance their leadership and administrative skills.

Alumni Meet: Organizing an alumni meet for Bangladeshi civil servants who have participated in past NCGG programs to enable shared learning and networking.

**Participation in the National e-Governance Conference**: Inviting awarded Bangladeshi civil servants as speakers for the 27th National e-Governance Conference in India.

Following extensive discussions, several key agreements were reached:

One-Week Capacity Building Program: NCGG will curate a one-week capacity-building program for senior civil servants of Bangladesh.

Two Two-Week Capacity Building Programs: These will be organized for faculty members from BPATC, BCSAA, NAPD, and NADA in July and September 2024.

Alumni Meet: An alumni meet will be organized, covering select alumni from the 71 capacity-building programs previously conducted for senior Bangladeshi civil servants, aimed at fostering shared learning experiences.

e-Governance Conference Participation: DARPG will invite awarded Bangladeshi civil servants to serve as speakers at the 27th National e-Governance Conference.

Since 2014, NCGG has successfully conducted 71 capacity-building programs for 2,660 Bangladesh Civil Service Officers. The two sides have agreed to renew their collaboration, with plans to conduct capacity-building programs for 1,500 civil servants from 2025 to 2030.