UCEP Bangladesh started its journey in 1972 as a non-profit non-governmental organization, through the hands of Lindsay Allan Cheyne, a New Zealander, who first came to Bangladesh after the devastating cyclone of 1970. A quick second visit of Cheyne was prompted by the losses and ruins of our blood-lit liberation war of 1971; he was then responsible as a field worker of an international donor organization. Cheyne felt terribly shocked as he saw the grim situation where children of 8 to 10 years were engaged in very risky labor. He thought of doing something for these ill-fated children.

In 1973, with the consent of the then Vice-Chancellor, University of Dhaka, Cheyne started a school for them in the building of the Institute of Social Welfare and Research, University of Dhaka. His motto was to improve the standard of life of these disadvantaged children. Cheyne’s first school records an enrolment of 60 children.

In 1973 Cheyne opened the first UCEP General School upto class VIII at Segunbagicha Dhaka. In 1983, he opened the first UCEP Technical School at Mirpur, Dhaka with three trades- electric, tailoring and carpentry. At first only boys came and admitted in the general and technical schools. Later in 1984, girls also started to come for taking vocational education and training. Gradually the operation of UCEP Bangladesh expanded in eight regions comprising of 10 districts of the country.

Today, UCEP Bangladesh is one of the leading institutions among the country’s largest Technical Education providers touching dreams of 35,000 children and youth annually. Of them about 17,000 have been trained in Technical Education and more than 90% have found jobs.

UCEP Bangladesh wants to contribute to the country’s march ahead through creating skilled human resource and increasing employment generation.

At present, UCEP Bangladesh is running 32 General Schools, 10 Technical Schools, 17 Technical Outreach Centres, 2 Polytechnic Institutes and 10 Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Centres.