DHAKA: Finance Minister AMA Muhith asked the authorities concerned to bring 80 percent people of the country under Information Technology (IT).

The minister came up with the plea while addressing a ministerial conference at Bangabandhu International Convention Centre in city’s Agargaon area on Tuesday.

Regarding the initiatives of Bangladesh Bank in using Information and Communication Technology (ICT), he said the bank was out of ICT till 2009, but now the scenario is different.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ICT Affairs Advisor Sajeeb Wazed Joy presented keynote at the conference.

Joy said the export would earn $1 billion in ICT sector every year within the next five years when the country will get at least 10 lakh IT professionals.

He also said Bangladesh would become a middle income country by 2021 and the incumbent government has set a target to make it as a developed country by 2041.

However, the ministerial conference was arranged on the second day of the 4-day ‘Digital World’ Information Technology exposition.

Besides the host Bangladesh, some cabinet members from six Asian countries, including Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives, Vietnam and Cambodia took part in the conference.

Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the international IT exposition with the slogan of ‘Future is Here’.

BDST: 1717 HRS, FEB 10, 2015