Stories of struggle and success at BYLC Youth Carnival 2019

Due to scarcity of information, Osama Bin Noor found it hard to look for opportunities that could match his ambition as a student.

This  prompted him to act. In 2012, he opened a Facebook page and started posting links of higher education opportunities available at  home and abroad.

His friends also started to contribute by sharing links and soon the page took off.

Gathering courage from the success, he and his friends developed a website and named it “Youth Opportunities”.

It is now one of the largest online platforms in the country for seeking opportunities.

Anyone,  especially students, can get necessary information regarding higher education, job-related opportunities, competitions, conferences and fellowships from the platform.

Osama said, “What I felt [back then] was that Bangladesh has an overwhelmingly young population and the youth should know what opportunities are out there for them.”

He was sharing his thoughts at a plenary session of “BYLC Youth Carnival 2019” yesterday.

The session, titled “Stories of Hope and Action”, gathered young and successful entrepreneurs on one platform to speak.

At the session, BD Assistant co-founder Umma Kulsum said the youth should acquire self-esteem and confidence to be successful.

Consistency  and timeliness is key in this regard. Chalking out day-to-day plans and  executing them on time is essential for success, she said.

BD Assistant is a Rangpur-based organisation that works for developing skills among school dropouts, she added.

Speaking  at the same session, YY Ventures founder and managing director Shazeem M  Khairul Islam said trust in co-workers is essential for  achieving collective goal. In addition to this, one needs to have a clear understanding of what he or she is going to do.

Young people should discuss their thoughts and ideas with others, especially those who are more experienced, he added.

Wedding Diary Founder and CEO Prito Reza moderated the session.

“BYLC  Youth Carnival 2019” is an initiative of Bangladesh Youth Leadership  Center (BYLC). The two-day carnival kicked off yesterday at the capital’s Government College of Physical Education. BYLC organised the carnival with support from Manusher Jonno Foundation and UKaid.

Plenary sessions, workshops, problem-solving sessions, film screenings, and  exhibitions are highlights of the carnival. Some 8,000 youths from all over the country have registered for the event.

Addressing the  opening ceremony yesterday, BYLC Governing Board Chairperson Akhter  Matin Chaudhury said BYLC’s main objective is to make the youth aware of the principles of leadership and provide them with training and educate them to this end.

A good leader is one who is able to balance  between highest levels of competence with highest levels of nobility,  said Sudipto Mukherjee, UNDP country director in Bangladesh, adding a  leader has to be competent and humble.

Speaking at the ceremony,  Youth and Sports Ministry Secretary Akhter Hossain said about one third of the  country’s population are youths. It is a great advantage for Bangladesh. It is thus important to work for the youths because they possess the  best potential, he said.

Alongside government initiatives,  non-government platforms play an important role in reducing unemployment  in Bangladesh, he added.

NGO Affairs Bureau Director Shahadat  Hossain hoped BYLC’s role in creating leadership and growing confidence  among youths will extend further. He said the organisation should contribute further by creating employment opportunities.

Speaking at a separate session, SBK Tech Ventures Founder and Chairman Sonia  Bashir Kabir said it is possible to take technology-based services to the country’s rural areas and young people can play a big role in this  regard.

Rural people are still deprived of many basic services, said Sonia, also former managing director of Microsoft Bangladesh.

In Bangladesh, there are only one lakh physicians for 16 crore people, she said.

“So, if someone can provide [any technology-based] service that enables  rural people to speak to a doctor sitting at home then that is creating a value [for the country],” she added.