The U.S. Embassy Dhaka and the Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (CED) at BRAC University announce the names of the four Bangladeshi young entrepreneurs who will be visiting the United States from April 30 to June 3 under the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ Professional Fellows Exchange Program 2016 (April Round). The names were disclosed at the pre departure orientation program held at the GDLN Centre, BRAC University in the city on Thursday evening. An in-depth discussion along with questions and answers sessions were also held during the orientation.The four participants are (sitting from left in the pic) Freelance Journalist and Founder & PR Strategist of Newsfeed PR Syed R Shams, Senior Manager, Business Development & Strategy of Dreamcast Marketing & Communications, Mohiuddin Chowdhury Shaon, Director of Mondal Agro Industries Limited Md Rasheduzzaman, and Founder and President of Gen Lab Ratul Dev. Shamim E. Haque, Assistant Professor, BRAC Business School & Program Coordinator, CED announced the names and replied various queries of the fellows regarding the program. The fellows were selected following a strict three-fold scrutiny of more than 130 applications from Bangladesh.
Representatives from the American Center here in Dhaka Ms Parveen Elias and Mr. George Mesthos and former delegates of Professional Exchange Program were also attended in the program. The fellowship is hosted by the University of Oklahoma’s Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication and teamed up with the Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth (CCEW). The University of Oklahoma also collaborates with an in-country partner in each of the three countries participating in the program: BRAC University’s Center for Entrepreneurship Development in Bangladesh, BRAC Myanmar in Burma and Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) in India.
Ms. Elanie Steyn, co-director of the program and associate professor at the University of Oklahoma also joined in the session through Skype and said that the exchange program will inject Bangladeshi, Burmese and Indian mid-level emerging leaders into working small businesses in Oklahoma and associate them with one of America’s leading universities.
According to Elanie the program will provide professional experience and training that will nurture participants’ talent and prepare them for more responsible leadership positions in their businesses, communities and society in general as they return to their countries. In addition, the program will provide U.S.-based small business stakeholders an opportunity to collaborate with their Bangladeshi, Burmese and Indian counterparts as they participate in a two-week outbound exchange to the respective countries in June or July. Three young entrepreneurs each from India and Burma will join their Bangladeshi counterparts in the program.
