The government is committed to achieving complete financial inclusion and fostering a fully inclusive society, ensuring universal access to digital resources by 2041, as part of its vision for a Smart Bangladesh.
An official document presented in Parliament outlines the plan to ensure 100% financial inclusion for all societal groups to build a smart society. The document also envisions the creation of Climate and Disaster-Resilient Smart Villages and Smart Cities, providing equitable access to civic amenities for both urban and rural populations.
The government emphasizes promoting digital access for individuals of all ages, religions, physical abilities, and social classes. It highlights the importance of fostering a digitally tolerant, fair, and inclusive society that embraces diversity.
A key objective is to rank within the top 20 of the Global Cyber Security Index. Last year, Bangladesh advanced 27 places in the National Cyber Security Index (NCSI), prepared by the Estonia-based e-Governance Academy Foundation, rising to 36th position from 85th in December 2020. The NCSI evaluates nations on cyberattack preparedness, cyber events, criminal activity, and major crisis management efforts.
Currently, Greece holds the top spot on the NCSI with a score of 97.10, while the United States and the United Kingdom rank 18th and 19th, respectively. Among Asian countries, Singapore ranks 16th, Japan 34th, Sri Lanka 69th, and Pakistan 70th.
The government is also taking steps to promote a culturally rich society through active participation in economic and governmental activities. Initiatives have been launched to make the languages of Bangladesh’s ethnic groups and the Bengali language more technology-friendly.
One such initiative is the development of ‘Sathik,’ the first Bengali spell checker for AI-based misspelling detection and accurate word suggestion. Additionally, ‘Janamat,’ a Bengali sentiment analysis software, has been created to analyze daily news and public opinion on social media.
A smart universal keyboard for writing all languages, including minority languages, has been developed, along with a conversion software to prevent the breaking of Bengali words across different platforms.
In honor of International Mother Language Day 2024 and in memory of language martyrs, three AI-based Bengali language software—Bangla Text to Speech ‘Uchcharan,’ Bengali Speech to Text ‘Katha,’ and Bengali OCR ‘Barna’—along with a new Bengali font ‘Purno,’ have been introduced.
These initiatives reflect the government’s commitment to leveraging technology for inclusive development and cultural preservation as part of its vision for a Smart Bangladesh by 2041.