Sajeeb Wazed Joy turns 51

The 51st birthday of Bangabandhu's grandson Sajeeb Wazed Joy is being celebrated Tuesday amid increasing public expectations about his future role in political arena as by now he played the pivotal role in setting the country's crucial course being the beacon of 'Digital Bangladesh'.

Despite being a leading political figure, Joy so far preferred a distinct course of action unlike any conventional politician, to materialize the electoral pledge of the party he belongs to and his mother Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina leads to build a Digital Bangladesh.

Contemporary political history suggests that Joy, also Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ICT Affairs Adviser, was a key figure in formulating the Awami League's Vision 2021 manifesto, based-on what the party was reelected thrice to power since 2008.

Being a member of Bangladesh's most illustrious political family, Joy's character largely reflects the qualities of his grandfather Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who founded the country to remain as the Father of the Nation.

A graduate in computer engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington in the United States, Joy was born in 1971, coinciding with the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent nation. His father Dr MA Wazed Miah was an internationally reputed nuclear scientist.

Joy attended the Kennedy School of Government at one of world's most famous Harvard University, which taught him the governance issues and earned him the Masters degree in Public Administration.

According to observers, Joy successfully could combine his academic learning on these two disciplines to be applied in leading the Digital Bangladesh campaign.

His excellence earned him the honour of being selected as one of the "250 Young Global Leaders of the World" in 2007 Davos summit of World Economic Forum, which is said to largely set the global affairs.

On February 25 in 2009, Sajeeb Wazed officially joined the Awami League as a primary member of the Rangpur district unit of the party within days, and as an IT policy analyst, unveiled the concept paper and action plan for the government's ambitious "Digital Bangladesh" campaign.

The aim was to develop a strong ICT industry in Bangladesh and initiate e-governance and IT education on a mass scale to materialize Bangabandhu's dreams of a prosperous Bangladesh in the new century.

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman established a satellite earth station at Betbunia in 1975, while being his grandson Joy sent a satellite into space.

Bangladesh achieved a remarkable success in the field of ICT with millions of the country's youths earning money from home and competing with the whole world due to Joy's initiative.

Joy, who is also dubbed as architect of Digital Bangladesh, is currently spearheading a campaign in developing young entrepreneurs by taking various programmes related to information technology, politics, social, economic and education.

Marking his birthday, Awami Jubo League will arrange a milad and doa mahfil at Bangabandhu Avenue here in the morning.

Besides, milad and doa mahfil and tree plantation programme will be observed at district, city, upazila, thana, municipality and union levels with maintaining health guidelines.

In the afternoon, Awami Swechchhasebak League will cut a cake and arrange prayers seeking sound health and long life of Sajeeb Wazed Joy.