Shama Obaed Islam stresses the importance of a long-term Bangladesh-Google partnership in skills development, institutional capacity and responsible technology use, particularly for the country’s young population.
Adviser to the Prime Minister for Finance and Planning Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam, State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Boby Hajjaj, Adviser to the Prime Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology and Science and Technology Rehan Asif Asad, Bangladesh Ambassador to the United States Tareq Md Ariful Islam, Consul General in Los Angeles Kazi Muhammad Jabed Iqbal and Google for Education Vice-President of Strategy and Operations Divya Jani pose for a photograph at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, on 28 September 2026. Photo: Courtesy
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Adviser to the Prime Minister for Finance and Planning Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam, State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Boby Hajjaj, Adviser to the Prime Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology and Science and Technology Rehan Asif Asad, Bangladesh Ambassador to the United States Tareq Md Ariful Islam, Consul General in Los Angeles Kazi Muhammad Jabed Iqbal and Google for Education Vice-President of Strategy and Operations Divya Jani pose for a photograph at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, on 28 September 2026. Photo: Courtesy
A high-level Bangladesh ministerial delegation held talks with senior Google executives at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, on 28 September on potential cooperation in education modernisation, artificial intelligence, digital skills, cloud computing and cybersecurity.
The delegation was led by Adviser to the Prime Minister for Finance and Planning Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir and included State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam, State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Boby Hajjaj, and Adviser to the Prime Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology and Science and Technology Rehan Asif Asad.
Bangladesh’s ambassador to the United States Tareq Md Ariful Islam and Consul General in Los Angeles Kazi Muhammad Jabed Iqbal also participated, according to a foreign ministry press release issued today (29 September).
The Google delegation was led by Divya Jani, vice-president of strategy and operations at Google for Education.
The talks focused on using technology and AI to modernise Bangladesh’s education system, strengthen teachers and improve learning outcomes.
Shama Obaed Islam stressed the importance of a long-term Bangladesh-Google partnership in skills development, institutional capacity and responsible technology use, particularly for the country’s young population.
Boby Hajjaj outlined Bangladesh’s priorities for primary education, including curriculum development, teacher training, digital connectivity, monitoring and technology-enabled learning.
The two sides discussed a potential integrated digital education ecosystem covering learning and school management systems, student assessment, digital educational content, and technology-enabled school inspection and monitoring.
Potential cooperation on AI-supported teacher training, digital safety, teacher certification and responsible classroom use of AI was also discussed.
Google representatives shared international experiences in teacher training and AI-supported learning, including the use of Google Workspace for Education, Google Classroom and Gemini for Education.
Rehan Asif Asad highlighted potential cooperation in AI, virtual learning, cloud computing, cybersecurity and data science, including structured training for students, teachers, professionals and young people.
Titumir stressed the need to link education, technology and skills development with employment, productivity and sustainable economic growth. He also highlighted opportunities to develop locally relevant AI and digital content, including Bangla-language AI capabilities.
The meeting also discussed Bangladesh’s growing YouTube creator ecosystem and opportunities to take Bangladeshi education, culture, entrepreneurship and creative content to global audiences. The Bangladesh side stressed creator skills, responsible content, digital safety and sustainable monetisation.
The two sides expressed interest in forming working groups between Google and relevant government agencies to identify priority initiatives and develop measurable cooperation in education, AI, digital skills, cloud computing, cybersecurity and responsible digital content.
The Consulate General of Bangladesh in Los Angeles, which facilitated the visit, will coordinate follow-up with Google and relevant ministries and agencies in Bangladesh, according to the press release.
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