Dhaka, May 12 -- Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Tuesday urged universities to move beyond traditional academic teaching and place greater emphasis on research and innovation to remain competitive in the modern world.

"If universities do not focus on research and innovation alongside textbook education, it will be difficult for us to survive in a competitive world," he said while speaking at the inaugural session of a workshop at Dhaka University.

The Prime Minister said Bangladesh's universities have yet to achieve the expected position in global rankings in education, research and knowledge excellence.

"Global university rankings usually place greater importance on research publications, citations and innovation. Our academics shoul...