Canadian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Ajit Singh on Monday said ensuring a safe and open digital space is critical ahead of Bangladesh’s 2026 national elections.
“With elections coming up, ensuring that the digital space remains safe, inclusive, and open is more important than ever,” he said at the inauguration of “Build4Democracy” Hackathon at a city hotel to strengthen the country’s digital resilience.
The envoy described digital integrity as essential to protecting public trust and democratic participation.
The High Commissioner said the hackathon represented more than technological creativity, stressing its role in shaping democratic resilience.
“We are not here merely to encourage innovation for innovation’s sake. We are here to encourage impactful innovation that strengthens people’s voices and public trust,” he said.
He noted that Bangladesh’s fast-expanding digital sphere brings both opportunities for transparency and challenges such as misinformation, harassment, and declining trust.
“The ideas you start today can make online spaces safer, more inclusive, and more resilient,” he told participants.
The Build4Democracy Hackathon was hosted by SecDev with support from Global Affairs Canada, in collaboration with UNDP Bangladesh as strategic partner; Peace Maker Studio as implementing partner; Activate Rights as knowledge partner; and Rupantar and Surge Bangladesh as outreach partners. Film4Peace served as prize partner.
The initiative united young technologists, civil-society actors, entrepreneurs, and researchers from across the country to develop practical digital tools that reinforce information integrity, protect diverse voices and promote safe online engagement ahead of the 2026 polls.
Participants were guided by mentors to design solutions under two core themes—Preserving Diverse Voices and Creating Safe Digital Spaces—with an emphasis on real-world applicability and rapid deployment.
A Shark Tank–style innovation arena formed the centrepiece of the event, where teams pitched their prototypes before a panel of judges including the CEO of SecDev, the Political Counsellor of the Canadian High Commission, a community lead from HundrED (Finland), a leading Bangladeshi fact-checking editor, and the ICT Products Head of Grameenphone.
Judges evaluated proposals on technical merit, democratic value, sustainability, ethics and community impact.
Winning teams will receive targeted support and seed funding to complete a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) within one month.
A second Build4Democracy Showcase Event is scheduled for January 2026, followed by pilot testing and deployment of selected tools ahead of the national elections.
The Canadian High Commission urged participants to anchor their innovations in community needs, ethical safeguards and long-term sustainability.
“Security, privacy, and do-no-harm principles are not optional; they are the foundation of public trust,” he said.
“Bangladesh’s next chapter will be written not only in its cities, towns, and institutions, but also in its digital public sphere,” he told young innovators.
Bd-pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
