The 'Dhaka Declaration' has been adopted with eight strategic commitments, aimed at building a stable, inclusive, innovative and globally acceptable higher education system in South Asia.

University Grants Commission (UGC) Secretary Dr Md Fakhrul Islam disclosed the information.

Besides, in a press release, the UGC said the declaration was unanimously adopted on the concluding day of a four-day international conference titled "Current State and Future Directions of South Asian Regional Higher Education", held on Thursday at a city hotel.

UGC Member Professor Dr Mohammad Tanzimuddin Khan read out the declaration before the conference participants.

The declaration identified sustained political commitment, strong institutional leadership and regional cooperation as essential components for meaningful and sustainable transformation of higher education.

The declaration underscored the need to ensure institutional autonomy, transparency and accountable governance, guarantee equitable and affordable access to higher education for women and marginalized communities, enhance research capacity and strengthen industry-academia collaboration, align curricula with labour market demands and improve graduate employability, promote digital transformation and the ethical and responsible use of artificial intelligence, mainstream climate change and sustainable development into teaching and research, expand regional networking including student and faculty exchange, and engage civil society, industry and the media to build public trust.

The declaration also recognized higher education as a strategic sector for fostering peace and mutual trust in South Asia and called for revitalizing the SAARC platform to further strengthen regional cooperation.

According to the conference decisions, such dialogues will be organized regularly to reinforce regional networks, while the next conference will be held in the Maldives.

UGC Chairman Professor Dr SMA Faiz, Commission Members Professor Dr Mohammad Anwar Hossain, Professor Dr Md Saidur Rahman, Professor Dr Masuma Habib and Professor Dr Ayub Islam were present at the closing session.

The four-day conference was organized under the Higher Education Acceleration and Transformation (HEAT) Project being implemented by the UGC with financing from the Bangladesh government and the World Bank.

Participants said the 'Dhaka Declaration' would serve as a common roadmap for transforming the future of higher education in South Asia.