SOCIAL SAFETY NETS
Making local govt accountable
MD HABIBULLA, back from Joypurhat
Pandumi, a 66-year-old widow of Kusumba union in Panchbibiupzaila under Joypurhat district, had absolutely no idea of the old-age allowance offered by the government even though she has been eligible for the scheme for the past four years. Finally, she was enlisted for the government allowances for elderly people last year.
Now I know all about the allowance. Ive been getting this allowance for the past one year, the sexagenarian gushed.
Pandumi owes her new-found joy primarily to World Vision Bangladesh, an international NGO, which has taken steps to disseminate information to people through the Establishing Vulnerable Peoples Rights and Access to Social Safety Net Programmes (EVPRA) project.
Talking to The Independent, she said she gets at least Tk. 1,800 as elderly allowance every three months. With this money, I have purchased a goat and some educational materials for my seventh grade grandson, said the beneficiary.
Rashmani Madhi, the mother of a 24-year-old mentally disabled boy named Uttam Tudu from Baghjana union in Panchbibi upazila, told The Independent: My son is disabled since birth. He could not do anything like normal people. We tried our best, but did not get the necessary results. We were in a deep financial crisis. We didnt know that the local government provides allowances to disabled people. When members of the project told us about his facility, we immediately contacted the local union parishad chairman. Thankfully, my son has been receiving the disabled allowance for the last year, she said.
Like them, a huge chunk of the countrys vulnerable population in five upazilas of Dinajpur and Joypurhat districts, where proper information is hard to come by, are now aware of their rights and have gained access to social safety net schemes, thanks to the initiatives taken by some non-government organisations (NGOs).
Awareness of rights
Since 2016, poor and ultra-poor people, who earlier were quite unaware of their rights and had no access to social safety net schemes, have become self-dependent. After the implementation of the project, the vulnerable people can now voice their own concerns in the decision-making process.
These people are now speaking at interface and advocacy meetings at each union parishad as members of the social safety net programmes (SSNP) selection committee and standing committee. Besides, they are receiving adequate support from different government and non-government development agencies.
Champa Mandal, a member of civil society organisations (CSOs) committee and a beneficiary, said there was no electricity in their village. After discussing this at a CSOs meeting, we all talked to the authorities. Finally, the people of our village got access to electricity in 2018.
As per the governments instructions, we have provided these allowances to the poor. In order to ensure the poor get them, and make the poor people aware of the allowances from the government, some non-governmental organisations has been working for the last couple of years, which makes our work easier, said Md Nazmul Haque, the chairman of the Baghjana union parishad of Panchbibi upazila in Joypurhat district. He said, We display a list of facilities provided by the local government. Weve set up a complaint box outside the union parishad gate. If anyone complains about anything, we take immediate steps. We hold several meetings in a month to establish the rights of ethnic minorities.
A vulnerable woman named Sabina Manam, who is now self-dependent after getting allowances from the Vulnerable Group Development (VGD) scheme, told The Independent: I didnt have any house to live, nor any land. When I was informed about the scheme, I went to the union parishad chairman. After considering my situation, the chairman gave me some land and some money to set up a house. Besides, every month I get at least 30kg of rice under the scheme. By selling some of the rice I purchased a goat, she said.
The EVPRA basically works on nine SSNPsallowances for the elderly; allowances for the financially insolvent disabled; allowances for the widowed, deserted and destitute women; maternal allowance programme for poor lactating mothers; Vulnerable Group Development (VGD); Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF); Food for Works (FFW); Secondary Education Stipend Project (SESP); and Primary Education Stipend Project (PESP). In 2016, the project was launched under World Vision Bangladesh, Pollisree and Peoples Union of the Marginalized Development Organization (PUMDO) to bring the poor and ultra-poor under the social safety net programmes (SSNP).
With the financial support of the European Union (EU) and the help of the local government, World Vision Bangladesh has worked in five upazilas of Dinajpur and Joypurhat districts for 69,830 households, 278,668 vulnerable people and targeted beneficiaries from different ethnic minority groups like the Santal, Uraon, Mahali, Malo, Mahato, Pahan, Borman, Sing, Kurin, Munda, Robidas, Kormokar and Horijan. Of those, approximately 86,916 are women, 84,001 men, 54,798 girls and 52,951 boys. It has also worked for 238,715 beneficiaries from different non-ethnic vulnerable groups, including elderly people, disabled people, widows, deserted and destitute women, poor lactating mothers, schoolchildren, landless labourers and seasonally unemployed farmers.
Md Yusuf Ali, director of the EVPRA project, said: With the help of the government, we tried to inform the vulnerable section about their rights and how they could access different social safety net schemes. We started our journey four years back. The vulnerable people of the two districts were detached from the local government facilities but they did not even know that, he said.
He added: As we worked in a remote area while implementing the project, we faced several challenges. Its really a matter of joy that after the end of the project, we could make a large number of ultra-poor and vulnerable people of the two districts aware.
Greater number of
beneficiaries
The number of beneficiaries has significantly increased in the five upazilas of Dinajpur and Joypurhat districts after the implementation of the project over the last few years as the people are now aware of their rights and about their access to society. Besides, connectivity between vulnerable people and service holders of local government has also increased.
Talking to The Independent, another beneficiary, Selina Hebom, said: Earlier, I didnt know how to access the facilities at the local government level. Nobody cared for me. After the implementation of the EVPRA project, weve become aware of our rights. We can now access the social safety net programmes. We now know what we should do to establish our rights and where to go, she added. The number of people who get allowances from our union parishad has increased over the past couple years. Its really good to see that now people are aware of their own rights and come to discuss their problems. And were here to provide service to the people, said Md Nazmul Haque.
The accountability of the local government at the grassroots level has improved as people now raise their voices at every level. Its an appreciable initiative taken by the government for the vulnerable people, especially women, in the two districts. Most of them did not know anything about their rights. Now they are directly discussing their problems and rights with the authorities, said Sabina Sultana, deputy director of the Department of Women Affairs in Joypurhat district. She said after the projects are implemented, connectivity between people and local government has increased and the accountability of the officials to the grassroots-level people has also improved. There are no problems of bribery from the people while getting access to government allowances. Now it is a transparent process, she said.
Social safety nets
The social safety net scheme, which is already being implemented by World Vision Bangladesh in two districts, should be extended across the country in order to make the poor and ultra-poor people aware of their rights and enable access to the local government level, said experts and social workers.
Dr Dijendranal Sharkar, the former chairman of Peoples Union of the Marginalized Development Organization (PUMDO) and a social worker, said he has been working for the welfare of the ultra-poor since 1974. People have benefited from the EVPRA project in the Joypurhat and Dinajpur areas. People now talk about their rights, which was earlier unexpected. The ultra-poor people of the other districts of the country can be benefited through the programme. The government should take steps in this regard, he said.
Chandan Gomes, director (programme development) of World Vision, said the vulnerable people of the districts did not get the facilities under the social safety scheme due to the biased attitude of some local government officials. But with the help of the government, we have significantly changed the scenario and made people aware of their rights in respect of the local government and available facilities, he said.
Around 100 local civil society organisations (CSOs) are working for the rights and development of ethnic minority groups. Of them, 20 organisations work in each sub-district with 30 members, thereby reaching 3,000 members directly.
