Majority of Japan voters want election sooner: poll

Reuters/bdnews24.com . Tokyo

A majority of Japanese voters want a general election earlier than the planned August 30, an opinion poll showed on Wednesday, as the main opposition party kept its lead over the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
The Japanese prime minister, Taro Aso, said on Monday he would dissolve parliament next week for an August 30 election, though some in the LDP still aim to oust the unpopular Aso before the vote.
In the poll by the Yomiuri newspaper, 56 percent of respondents said they want an election before August 30, while 30 per cent said Aso’s decision for that date was appropriate.
About 36 per cent said they plan to vote for the main opposition Democratic Party in the election, up 1 percentage point from the last survey, while 21 per cent will vote for the LDP, down 4 points.
An opposition victory in the lower house election would end more than half a century of almost unbroken rule by Aso’s business-friendly LDP. Some 45 per cent of respondents saw the Democrats leader Yukio Hatoyama as more suited for the premiership, while 25 per cent preferred Aso, the survey showed.

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China issues security alert after al-Qaeda threat

Agence France-Presse . Urumqi, China

China issued a security alert Wednesday to its citizens in Algeria after al-Qaeda reportedly vowed to avenge the deaths of Muslims killed during ethnic unrest in this northwestern Chinese city.
The warning came as China raised the death toll from violence on July 5 in Urumqi by eight to 192, in what was the worst ethnic violence in the country in decades.
A hefty police presence remained in the capital of the Xinjiang region on Wednesday, allowing more businesses and shops to re-open, but ethnic tensions continued to simmer.
In Algiers, China’s embassy called on its citizens to be wary of any threats.
‘The Chinese Embassy in Algeria is specially calling on Chinese-funded organisations and personnel to raise their security awareness and strengthen security measures,’ the embassy said in a statement on its web site.
The statement said tougher security measures should be taken ‘in view of the situation following the violent criminal incident in Urumqi on July 5’ and that any ‘emergency matter’ should be reported to the embassy immediately.
London-based risk analysis firm Stirling Assynt said in a report issued Tuesday that an al-Qaeda affiliate had vowed to avenge the deaths of Muslim Uighurs killed in Xinjiang by targeting Chinese workers in north Africa.
The call came from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the report said. It was the first time Osama bin Laden’s network has directly threatened China or its interests, it noted.
Hundreds of thousands of Chinese work in the Middle East and North Africa, including 50,000 in Algeria, the report said.
The state-run China Daily carried a front-page article on Wednesday publicising the embassy statement and reported that China’s diplomatic mission in Tunisia was working on contingency plans following the al-Qaeda warning.
Foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said Tuesday that Beijing would ‘take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of overseas Chinese institutions and people.’
Before the latest update of the number of people killed from the official Xinhua news agency, Chinese authorities had said unrest in Urumqi on July 5 left 184 people dead.

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Call centre industry growth faces hurdles

Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan

Mere ability to procure businesses and lack of skilled manpower are obstructing the promising call centre industry in Bangladesh to flourish.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission has so far issued licenses to more than 270 firms, of which 33 are operational and the existence of the rest is merely on the BTRC’s list.
Further more, not all the operational call centres are making fortune, rather most of them are struggling to survive when only a few are maintaining their businesses at par.
According to the industry insiders and BTRC officials, less than 10 operators are doing good business.
Failure to find businesses both locally and internationally is keeping most of the license holders out of operation, they said.
Bangladeshi call centres are facing acceptability problems in getting businesses from overseas, as the clients doubt about the capability and standard of the centres due to absence of international certification. The overseas clients also want to be sure about the call centres’ IT structure and auditing.
Shakil Jowad Rahim of newly formed Bangladesh Association of Call Centres and Outsourcing told New Age that the industry is still at early stage. But the call centres could grab a good share of estimated US$ 600 billion global market should the problems of the industry are addressed.
Describing marketing as the key to success of a call centre, he said that the world would have to be informed that Bangladesh is a good place for outsourcing.
Shakil pointed out that call centres that have good foreign connections are performing well. ‘If you look at the well-performing centres, you will find at least one partner who resides abroad.’
He said that shortage of skilled and experienced manpower is one of the major problems faced by the prospective as well as serving call centre operators.
There should be adequate tanning centres to train up the prospective manpower in the industry, he added.
IT infrastructure-related problems also need to be addressed for the growth of the industry, said Shakil whose firm has both domestic and international clients.
Hello World Communications, a Chittagong-based call centre, has started operation about four months ago and is currently serving four clients from the United Kingdom.
‘We are doing well. Our clients are satisfied with the services we provide,’ said Mejbah Uddin, the chief executive officer of the company.
Encouraged by the progress, he said that they are planning expansion. ‘We through our partner in UK are negotiating with some organisations.’
Many firms are not sure about going into operation due to lack of knowledge about the industry.
CPM Systems Limited was issued the license, but yet to be operational. About the delay, its general manager Iqbal Ferdous cited lack of technical know-how, failure to find businesses and skilled manpower.
‘Now, to some extents we have overcome these problems. We have applied for connectivity. Once, we get the connectivity we will start operation,’ he said.
BTRC chairman Zia Ahmed sounded upbeat about the future of the industry.
‘Some 33 companies are functioning. Some of them are doing really well. You will have to wait one to two years for the industry to flourish. The future is bright,’ he told New Age.
Replying to a question, he said that many firms have taken licenses without having any understanding whatsoever about the business.
About issuance of licenses indiscriminately, the BTRC chairman said, ‘Whoever came licenses have been issued. If one can not do it today, he will do it later.’
Responding to a query, he said there is no regulatory barrier on part of the BTRC.
The BTRC started issuing licenses in April, 2008 during the immediate-past caretaker government with a license fee of Tk 5,000.
One of the conditions of license issuance is that a call centre has to be operational within six months. Of course, the call centres can apply to extend the time.
According to BTRC officials, initially the commission was relaxed, but now it is strict in issuing licenses.

from-newage

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Building of Tk 60,000 cr deep sea port begins next year

UNB, Dhaka

An inter-ministerial meeting of the government on Wednesday gave the go-ahead to a massive deep-sea port project to be implemented in three phases at a total cost of Tk 60,000 crore.
Implementation of the first phase of the mega-infrastructure scheme begins next year and will complete by 2017. The cost of the first-phase works is estimated at Tk 13,000 crore.
The much-debated deep-sea port project is going to be placed before the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs soon as today's (Wednesday) inter-ministerial meeting accepted two reports clearing the way for implementing the scheme.
"We've approved the reports on the deep-sea port and decided to move those forward to the Cabinet Economic Affairs Committee as the next step," Shipping Minister Afsarul Amin told reporters after presiding over the meeting.
Japan-based Pacific Consultant International prepared a techno-economic feasibility study report and a technical evaluation committee of the Shipping Ministry examined the consultant's report.
Both the reports-consultant's report and its evaluation report-were placed before the Shipping Ministry-convened inter-ministerial meeting.
According to the minister, the gigantic project will be implemented on over 220 hectares of land at Sonadia point near Maheshkhali Island of the Bay of Bengal in three phases from 2010 to 2055 at a total cost of Tk 60,000 crore. Sonadia is 80 kilometres away from Chittagong seaport.
The first phase of construction works will be completed by 2017 creating facilities of 4 cargo jetties and 5 container terminals.
It will cost Tk 13,000 crore and 30 percent of it will be invested by the Chittagong Port Authority and the remaining 70 percent will be arranged on the basis of public-private partnership (PPP).
The second phase, to be completed by 2035, would see two more harbours with the same specifications. The deep-sea port would have six harbours when the third phase is completed by 2055.
The study proposed a 40-kilometre (25 miles) railway and roadway to help connect the deep-sea port with Chittagong and Cox's Bazar resort cities.

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'Uniform curriculum' for all universities

Government recommends that the draft uniform national education curriculum for public and private universities, sliding scale, depending on the student's financial situation and the decentralization of the national university.

The draft policy emphasis on science, medicine and technology universities in the country.

Dr Quazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmed, co-chairman of the drafting committee, said the national education policy bdnews24.com draft, which ended on 21st July and ends in August.

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid officially announced the formation of a national education policy-making committee, headed by National Professor Kabir Chowdhury, April 8th

16-member Commission includes a writer of science teacher, Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Zafar and Kholiquzzaman, including Chief Economic Bangladesh.

The higher education, known as the design fees in public universities "too small". In order to provide more opportunities for poor students, the fees will be determined by sliding scale, depending on the financial status of guardians.

It also supports the provision of low interest loans to deserving students.

What State University, a major player in higher education, the report said activities are limited because it has too many responsibilities.

He recommends urgent action to establish centers in every region now to decentralize its activities.

The Commission said that the National University of decentralization law, which is not implemented in previous years, but the current government, which has been in office in January, has taken initiatives to do so.

It is also advisable to review existing legislation to establish private universities and Accreditation Council monitoring the quality of education. These measures are already underway.

The report said that the children of freedom fighters, tribal and other minority groups continue to support the special admissions to higher studies.

It is also recommended to continue the current four-year period is extensive and one of the master.

source-bdnews24

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