BRAC Bank plans to expand its women entrepreneur accelerator programme “Uddokta 101” nationwide after supporting more than 500 women entrepreneurs through university partnerships since 2021.
The bank announced the expansion plan at the “TARA Uddokta 101 Scale-Up Summit” held at BRAC University on Wednesday, where academics, development partners and entrepreneurs reviewed the programme’s impact and future roadmap.
The programme, operated under BRAC Bank’s women banking platform “TARA”, focuses on business management, financial literacy, market readiness and digital capability development for women entrepreneurs.
BRAC Bank said the initiative has been implemented in partnership with BRAC University, East West University, Daffodil International University and Chittagong Independent University to strengthen links between academia and industry.
The summit featured impact review sessions, panel discussions and networking engagements focusing on women entrepreneurship development and future expansion strategies.
Presentations at the event highlighted participant progress in business formalisation, financial discipline, market access and digital adoption.
BRAC Bank Managing Director and CEO Tareq Refat Ullah Khan said the programme reflects the bank’s long-term commitment to increasing women’s participation in the economy.
“Uddokta 101 is an ideal example of how industry and academia partnership can bring change in entrepreneurship development,” he said.
“We will enrich and scale up this accelerator programme and take this across the country to meet evolving capacity-building needs of aspiring entrepreneurs at the grassroots level,” he added.
East West University Board of Trustees Chairperson Professor Mohammed Farashuddin said the initiative is contributing to women entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh.
Chittagong Independent University Vice Chancellor Professor M M Nurul Absar said collaboration between industry and academia could play an important role in the country’s socio-economic development.
BRAC University Pro Vice Chancellor Professor Arshad Mahmud Chowdhury and Daffodil International University Vice Chancellor Professor M R Kabir also spoke at the event.
