Matin Sagor , Staff Reporter || Bangladesh can accelerate its economic growth by effectively utilising its large working-age population, said Chief Whip of the National Parliament Nurul Islam Moni.He made the remarks on Sunday while speaking as a special guest at a workshop titled Parliament’s Role in Realizing Population Dividends, SDGs and ICPD Commitments at the oath-taking room of the National Parliament.The workshop was jointly organised by the Bangladesh Parliament Secretariat and UNFPA Bangladesh under the Strengthening Parliament’s Capacity in Integration of Population and Development Issues (SPCPD) project.Moni said Bangladesh must turn its working-age population into a skilled and educated workforce to capitalise on the country’s demographic dividend.If the country’s large working-age population can be integrated into domestic and international labour markets through proper education, technical training and job-oriented skills development, economic development will accelerate further, he said.The Chief Whip said natural resources alone cannot guarantee economic prosperity. Rather, a country’s greatest asset is its skilled and educated population.Learning from the experiences of different countries, Bangladesh must transform its large working-age population into skilled human resources. A skilled, educated and productive population is the main driving force behind sustainable economic development, he said.He said the next decade will be a crucial period for Bangladesh to reap the benefits of its demographic dividend. During this period, the country must convert the size and capacity of its working-age population into economic strength.Skills, education and productivity will be the key drivers of Bangladesh’s future economic progress, Moni said.He identified child marriage, climate change, education, investment and employment among the challenges to fully realising the demographic dividend.Members of Parliament, he said, must play an active role in identifying these challenges and finding solutions. As elected representatives, MPs have an important role to play in population and development issues as well as in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.On overseas employment, Moni said simply sending workers abroad was not enough. Workers must be equipped with skills and job-oriented education before entering international labour markets.Skilled workers can contribute to the economies of host countries while sending remittances home, which would help strengthen Bangladesh’s economy, he said.The Chief Whip also called on development partners to provide more effective support for human resource development in Bangladesh. He stressed the expansion of education, technical training and job-oriented learning.Developing skilled human resources, he said, would increase employment opportunities as well as boost productivity and remittance inflows.Speaker of the National Parliament Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram attended the workshop as the chief guest. Deputy Speaker Barrister Kaiser Kamal chaired the event. UNFPA Bangladesh Representative Catherine Breen Kamkong was also present as a special guest.