Surpasses 10,000
BRAC and KUMON: Expanding Learning Opportunities Together
BKL is a subsidiary established by BRAC, one of the world’s largest NGOs, to promote the Kumon Method in Bangladesh. KUMON, BRAC and BKL have been parties to a tripartite license agreement since July 2019. Reaching 10,000 subject enrollments in approximately four years since the full-scale rollout of Kumon Centers began in 2022 represents exceptionally rapid growth compared with other countries and regions, demonstrating how quickly the KUMON Method is gaining acceptance in Bangladesh.
Akio Tsunoda, then President of KUMON (left), with Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of BRAC, in 2013.
The initiative began in 2013, following an encounter between the then President of KUMON and the late Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of BRAC. Since the first Kumon Center opened in Dhaka, the capital, in 2017, the Kumon Method has steadily expanded across Bangladesh. This growth is underpinned by a value shared by BRAC and KUMON: believing in the potential of every individual.
Since its establishment in 1972, BRAC has supported people in becoming self-reliant through its work in education, healthcare, finance and many other fields, earning widespread trust both in Bangladesh and internationally. KUMON likewise places great importance on developing learners’ ability to learn and pursue their own potential independently. Both organizations have focused on empowering people to shape their own futures, rather than viewing the provision of support as an end in itself. This shared commitment continues to strengthen the trust at the heart of our partnership with BRAC and support its development.
As of July 2026, BKL operates 38 Kumon Centers, primarily in Dhaka and Chattogram, Bangladesh’s second-largest city. Learning outcomes have steadily improved, with 165 students having completed the final level of the Kumon Program equivalent to high school-level study.
Currently, more than 40 percent of the students are studying beyond their school grade level, and one student completed the Kumon English Program at the age of seven.
Students have shared comments such as: “In Bangladesh, there are few opportunities to feel, ‘Yes! I did it!’ But with KUMON study, I can score 100 every day and feel that sense of achievement,” and “I love KUMON study because I can see how much I have grown since yesterday, instead of competing with someone else.”
Through the Kumon Method, children not only develop strong academic skills but also recognize their own progress and build confidence.
A Kumon Center in Bangladesh
Ceremony for students studying above grade level (April 2026)
Alongside its predominantly urban Kumon Center business, BKL has worked to provide learning opportunities to children in diverse locations and circumstances by introducing the Kumon Method into schools and other facilities. These initiatives are supported by local stakeholders, including Japanese companies, who share the underlying aspirations of “We want these children to be able to shape their own futures” and “We cannot leave these children without support.”
The Kumon Method is currently offered at four sites: a residential care facility for former street children near the Indian border; a public primary school adjacent to a Japanese-affiliated industrial park; a learning facility for children of garment factory employees; and an educational facility serving an ethnic minority community in the Chattogram Hill Tracts. At these sites, children study on tablets using KUMON CONNECT. By eliminating the need to distribute printed worksheets, KUMON CONNECT has made it possible to provide Kumon study to children who could not previously be reached through the conventional Kumon Center business alone.
Students study on tablets at Sonpara Primary School.
While Kumon Centers in Bangladesh are currently concentrated in urban areas, many children across the country still lack access to quality learning opportunities. Going forward, KUMON and BKL also aim to provide children from low-income families with sustained access to the Kumon Method, using funding that includes a portion of the profits from the Kumon Center business serving children from middle- and high-income families.
KUMON, BRAC and BKL will continue to provide the Kumon Method to children who need it and contribute to creating supportive learning environments throughout Bangladesh, working toward a society in which as many children as possible have opportunities to learn.
Release PDF「20261010_Number of Subject Enrollments in Bangladesh Surpasses 10,000」
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