Sheikh Hasina’s Video Conference
I was lucky enough to sit in on one of Sheikh Hasina’s video conferences where she spoke to the people of Potuakhali via satellite. I sat with the Prime Ministerial candidate in the comfort of her own home in Dhanmondi at 10pm and spoke to Awami League activists about the upcoming elections.
Video conferences are a groundbreaking idea in Bangladesh and one that Sheikh Hasina has used very effectively throughout this election. Initially I could see that the constituents in Potuakhali were very skeptical about whether it would be possible to interact with Sheikh Hasina via this huge screen.
As she started speaking, they looked more reassured but not completely convinced. It was only after she started asking them questions and commenting on individuals that they realised this was almost as good as a live question and answer session.
I found the whole process fascinating and extremely progressive. This is a taster of how the Awami League plan to create a ‘Digital Bangladesh’. Sheikh Hasina also told me that video conferences helped her reach out to more people as she managed to save a lot of travelling time!
You can see a few more photos from the video conference here.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:01 am
video confurrence was just a introduction of digital bd, we can expect there r more techno-surprizes waiting for us in near future.
tnx to albd for such a wonderful gift.
January 6th, 2010 at 8:36 am
This is a great initiative from our Prime Minister. Having worked for Gartner in the UK, I have returned to Bangladesh to establish an Automation company in Dhaka. I believe that this is just the start towards greater achievement by introducing technology as a leverage to reach to the masses. I would be willing to discuss further on how developments can be made inline with a global presence.