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Nobel Peace Prize laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus on Monday called on universities to make social business an integral part of education, research and innovation, saying higher education institutions must play a leading role in nurturing entrepreneurs committed to solving social problems.
He made the call while delivering the opening and closing remarks at Academia Dialogue 2026, a flagship session of Social Business Day held at the Telecom Building in Mirpur.
The event brought together academic leaders, researchers and social business practitioners from Bangladesh and abroad to discuss how universities can integrate social business more deeply into academic curricula, research and institutional practice.
Representatives from the global Yunus Social Business Centre (YSBC) network joined scholars from Bangladesh, Japan, Taiwan, Mexico, Italy, Spain and Thailand for the dialogue, which featured two panel discussions on the future of social business education.
The first panel, moderated by Dr Farhana Ferdousi of Southeast University, explored ways to move social business beyond business schools and into mainstream university education.
Prof Muhammad Ibrahim of Grameen University argued that universities should shift their focus from traditional business education to value-creating entrepreneurship. He proposed replacing the conventional Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a “Master of Entrepreneurial Arts” programme to encourage innovation aimed at addressing social challenges.
Prof Dr Abdur Rab of IUBAT suggested introducing at least three compulsory social business courses within entrepreneurship programmes. While microfinance has already transformed millions of lives in Bangladesh, he said, universities now have a responsibility to demonstrate that socially driven business models can also be financially sustainable.
Prof Dr Rafiuddin Ahmed of North South University highlighted the growing role of digital learning platforms such as Canva, Udemy and edX in expanding educational opportunities and income generation. He argued that entrepreneurship education should begin at an early age, warning that universities risk becoming irrelevant if they fail to adapt to changing labour market demands.
He noted that millions of Bangladeshi graduates remain unemployed despite increasing opportunities in informal and home-based enterprises.
Alex Counts of the Grameen Foundation stressed the value of collaboration between universities and nonprofit organisations in developing socially impactful innovations, while Santos Judith Martinez Ramos of Mexico’s Universidad Autónoma de Baja California emphasised international research partnerships to address climate change and community challenges.
The second panel, chaired by Dr Ashir Ahmed of Japan’s Kyushu University, focused on expanding the global Yunus Social Business Centre network.
Dr Ahmed announced that the YSBC network has now grown to 116 centres worldwide, with the 117th centre set to be established at Grameen University.
Dr Yusnidah Ibrahim of Albukhary International University highlighted efforts to develop a formal curriculum on social business and strengthen international research collaboration.
Prof Chien-wen Mark Shen of Taiwan’s National Central University called for greater government support for social enterprises through microloan programmes and said environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards would become increasingly important in measuring the impact of social businesses.
Other speakers discussed the growing role of artificial intelligence, institutional innovation, leadership development and evidence-based research in strengthening social business education.
Prof Naoko Oishi of Ryukoku University shared experiences from Japan’s Social Business Exposure Programme, while academics from the University of Bologna, the University of Murcia and the University of Cantabria discussed the need for new teaching methods, stronger institutional capacity and better global data to measure the impact of social business initiatives.
The dialogue also highlighted the importance of leadership development, with Alex Counts arguing that effective leaders are developed through mentorship, practical experience and learning from failure rather than through academic qualifications alone.
In his closing remarks, Dr Faiz Shah of AIT/Yunus Thailand called on universities to combine academic knowledge with practical industry experience and pursue sustainable funding for innovation.
Prof Niaz Ahmed Khan of Grameen University underscored the need for continuous faculty development, locally relevant research and stronger collaboration across the YSBC network to expand community engagement.
Lamiya Morshed, Executive Director of the Yunus Centre, said the network would continue to expand globally, announcing that the next international YSBC gathering will be held in October 2026. She also revealed plans to establish a dedicated venture team to implement the initiatives discussed during Academia Dialogue 2026.