Joy was born to nuclear scientist MA Wazed Miah and Bangabandhu’s eldest daughter Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka amid the Liberation War on Jul 27, 1971.
He now advises Prime Minister Hasina on ICT affairs.
The Awami League has not planned any programme to celebrate the day amid the coronavirus pandemic. Its student wing Bangladesh Chhatra League will distribute food, stationaries and coronavirus protective gear among underprivileged children.
Prime Minister’s ICT Affairs Advisor Sajeeb Wazed Joy speaking at a workshop in Dhaka on Wednesday on the sector’s contribution to Bangladesh’s prosperity. The Parliament Secretariat organised the workshop for MPs to give them an idea of the government’s Digital Bangladesh initiative. (File Photo)
Although Joy is not actively involved in politics, Awami League leaders credit him for the ‘Digital Bangladesh’ idea that played a key role in the party’s election victory in 2008 by winning young minds.
He was listed by the World Economic Forum as one of its Young Global Leaders in 2007.
Joy was in Europe with his parents when Bangabandhu was assassinated in the Aug 15 1975 massacre of the family. He then travelled to India with his mother.
He studied at St Joseph’s College, India. He enrolled in Computer Science at the University of Bangalore, and then moved to The University of Texas at Arlington and received BSc degree in Computer Engineering.
Joy later completed Masters in Public Administration from Harvard University.
He married Kristine Overmike on Oct 26, 2002 and has a daughter with her.
Joy joined active politics in 2010 by becoming a member of the Awami League in Rangpur, the native town of his late father.
Now he is also working to develop the ICT sector in Bangladesh and create young leaders in this field and others.
He is chairman of the Awami League’s Centre for Research and Information and has shared ideas with youths at the CRI’s Let’s Talk show on several occasions.
The CRI also holds another programme, Policy Cafe, where the young minds share their thoughts with the policymakers. Both programmes are conceived by Joy.
Another of his important works is Young Bangla, the CRI platform for youths. Formed in 2014, Young Bangla has won international accolades while it also recognises young leaders for their work with awards.
The CRI is publishing the graphic novel ‘Mujib’, a series based on Bangabandhu’s ‘The Unfinished Memoirs’. It has released a docudrama, ‘Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale’, on her life.