Where will he use this skill?

Chief Engineer of Public Health Engineering Department. Sarwar Hossain is going to retire in the first week of next April. The previous month, he was going to the United States for skill development training. From there he will get maximum 20 working days. In such a short time, his training in the United States will be of use to the state or not, the question has been raised.

A letter was sent from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the US Embassy in Dhaka last Sunday. It is reported that 9 officials of the Ministry of Local Government will visit the United States on or around March 4 to 8. This time does not include travel time. They will attend a capacity building course titled 'Wash in Healthcare Facilities for Senior Officers' on Safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in the Health Sector in Atlanta, USA.

According to the information in the letter given to the US Embassy, the visiting team also includes Additional Secretary of the Local Government Department Malay Chowdhury, Director General of the Prime Minister's Office Shahida Sultana, Joint Secretary of the Local Government Department Emdadul Haque Chowdhury, Chief Executive Officer Md. Directorate of Public Health and Engineering (DPHE) Engineer. Sarwar Hossain and Additional Chief Engineer Tushar Mohan Sadhu Khan. The rest are executive and assistant engineers of the company.

Several officials of the Directorate of Public Health Engineering said on condition of anonymity that the Directorate of Public Health Engineering is planning to work on water, sanitation and cleanliness (WASH) in medical facilities like hospitals and clinics in the future. This training on 'WASH' will be useful in the health sector. But it is not understandable that the chief engineer went for this training just a few days before his retirement.

The government has issued several circulars regarding foreign visits of government officials to reduce pressure on foreign exchange reserves. According to a notification issued by the Finance Ministry in September 2022, government employees will be allowed to travel abroad on a limited basis to pursue skill development programmes. Overseas training can also be attended by invitation and fully funded by foreign governments, institutions and development partners.

An official of the Directorate of Public Health Engineering on this visit to the United States said on condition of anonymity that the United Nations Children's Organization UNICEF has been working with the Directorate of Public Health Engineering for a long time. Directorate of Public Health Engineering will work on WASH in medical facilities. For this reason, UNICEF has organized this visit to increase the capacity of officials.