New DU VC Prof Niaz Ahmed Khan, who is he?

Professor Niaz Ahmed Khan has been appointed as the new Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Dhaka University. The appointment was confirmed today by sources at the Bangabhaban, with President Md Shahabuddin, who also serves as the chancellor of the university, making the announcement.

Education Secretary Sheikh Abdur Rashid told the media on Monday that an official announcement on the matter will be made on Tuesday.

Previously, Professor Niaz held the position of Pro-Vice Chancellor at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) and was the former chairman of the Department of Development Studies at the University of Dhaka. He succeeds Professor Dr. ASM Maksud Kamal, who resigned from the VC position on August 10.

Professor Niaz Ahmed Khan has a distinguished background in academia and development management. He received numerous scholarships, including the UK Commonwealth Scholarship, as noted on the IUB website.

This appointment comes amid a widespread demand for reforms following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, which was prompted by a student-led uprising. Like other vice-chancellors appointed during the Awami League‍‍`s tenure, Professor Maksud had to resign.

Born in 1966, Professor Niaz completed his undergraduate and postgraduate studies at Chittagong University in 1986 and 1987, respectively. He also obtained a postgraduate diploma in Human Resource Management from the Institute of Personnel Management. In 1996, he earned his PhD in Development Studies from the University of Wales Swansea in the UK and later conducted post-doctoral research at the University of Oxford, the University of Wales, and the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand.

In addition to his new role, Professor Niaz has served as a senior academic adviser at the National Defence College (NDC), a senior academic adviser at the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development, and as chairman of the Arannayk Foundation, also known as the Bangladesh Tropical Forest Conservation Foundation.