UNDP and the ICT Division have joined forces to launch the Civic Tech Innovation Expo 2026 in Dhaka, bringing young builders, government voices, and development partners together around one clear goal: using technology to make public services smarter, fairer, and easier to use. The event marked the start of Bangladesh’s first youth-led civic technology ecosystem, showing growing interest in tools that can improve how citizens connect with the state. Supported through the Partnerships for a More Tolerant and Inclusive Bangladesh project and backed by the Government of Norway, the expo highlighted ideas created by young innovators who focused on real public needs. These ideas aimed to support democratic accountability, the rule of law, human rights, women’s safety, and digital inclusion, all of which are key parts of a more open and useful digital future. At the expo, student and youth teams presented practical tools such as AI-based legal information platforms, systems to fight false news, citizen feedback tools for public policy, and digital apps built to improve public services and protect the environment. Organizers said the event was not only about showing new products, but also about helping promising ideas move from early models into real services that people can use in daily life. Speakers from the ICT Division, UNDP, Norway’s embassy, and the Bangladesh Computer Council stressed that these tools should be shared on open platforms, linked with each other, and made available in more than one language so more people can benefit. The expo also offered a space for teamwork between young people and public institutions, which can help turn small projects into larger national solutions. By giving awards and innovation grants to the strongest teams, the event encouraged students to keep improving their work and to think about how technology can solve common problems in a direct and useful way. The expo showed that civic tech can do more than support online services; it can also help build trust, widen access, and bring citizens closer to public decision-making.
