The written examination for trainee selection under the “Skills Development through Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology for ICT-Literate Youth” project, implemented by the Department of Youth Development under the Ministry of Youth and Sports, was held simultaneously across all 64 districts in Bangladesh’s eight divisions, a press release said.

The examination took place on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at designated centres in every district. Nearly 83,000 applications were submitted nationwide for the programme. Following the verification process, around 50,000 applications were declared valid, making those applicants eligible to participate in the written examination.

In the first phase of the project, a total of 1,600 trainees will be selected, with 25 participants chosen from each of the country’s 64 districts. On average, more than 32 eligible applicants are competing for each available seat. In Dhaka alone, 3,780 applications were submitted for just 25 seats, resulting in competition of approximately 152 applicants per seat.

During the examination, Project Director Md. Atikur Rahman and Deputy Director of the Department of Youth Development in Dhaka, A.K.M. Shahriar, visited an examination centre in Kallyanpur, Dhaka. They observed the overall examination environment, candidate attendance, seating arrangements, security measures, question paper management, and the overall conduct of the examination. Senior officials of the Department of Youth Development, district-level officials, and representatives of the training providers were also present during the visit.

Project Director Md. Atikur Rahman said that comprehensive preparations had been made at both the central and district levels to ensure the smooth conduct of the written examination across all 64 districts simultaneously. He added that every stage of the selection process is being closely monitored and that trainees will be selected solely on merit and qualifications based on the results of the written, practical, and viva examinations.

He also announced that the practical and viva examinations for successful candidates in the written test will be held on July 29, while the final results are expected to be published on July 30. Training activities for the selected participants will begin simultaneously in all 64 districts on August 2.

Under the two-year project, jointly undertaken by the Ministry of Youth and Sports and implemented by the Department of Youth Development, a total of 11,200 young men and women will receive AI-focused training. Among them, 9,600 participants will receive Basic AI training, while 1,600 will be enrolled in the Advanced AI programme.

The training will be conducted in 448 batches, with 25 participants in each batch. Each course will run for two months and include 50 classes, providing a total of 300 hours of instruction.

The Basic AI course will cover practical applications of ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, DeepSeek, Gemini, Grammarly, QuillBot, Jasper, Canva, Pixlr, InVideo, and ElevenLabs. The Advanced AI course will include training on Runway, Synthesia, Midjourney, Tableau, Zapier, Descript, ClickUp, Notion AI, Dorik AI, Ahrefs, Salesforce, HubSpot, Copy.ai, Adobe Sensei, DALL·E, and Veo.

Beyond learning how to use AI tools, participants will develop practical skills in AI-powered content creation, digital marketing, video production, data analysis, workflow automation, business management, and technology-driven employment, preparing them for careers in the rapidly evolving digital economy.