DHAKA TRIBUNE

Special

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Solidarity works!

How volunteers contribute to common goods

strengthen education and health services in the public sector. Others volunteer in non-governmental organizations and contribute to the vibrant civil society of Bangladesh. Particularly when it comes to disaster response, the Bangladeshi volunteer spirit has come out and amazed the world. Millions of people are engaged in organizations such as the Bangladesh Scouts, Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP) or the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society and play an essential role in early warning and disaster response. During acute disasters, these volunteer-based organizations bridge the gap between the national government and local communities, through volunteers who travel to every village and inform the population about the magnitude and impact of cyclones. Volunteers assist in disaster response and have in the past evacuated people in need. Due to the efforts of these dedicated people, who are willing to risk their lives for others, the number of deaths caused by natural disasters has reduced significantly. Their contribution to reducing the disaster vulnerability has been highlighted in the Disaster Management Act (DM Act 2012). The act emphasizes the role of community self-help organizations and local networks as the most effective resources for reducing risk vulnerability in communities and building adaptive capacity. As such, the DM Act 2012 proposes the establishment of a National Volunteer Corps to integrate volunteers into disaster management. Peoples motivation to be engaged in their community is also seen on a much smaller scale, for example, in schools and universities, where young people come together to form social clubs. These clubs aim to improve the life of disenfranchised groups in Bangladeshi society. They work towards promoting a more environmental friendly society or address other issues close to their heart. organizations offer people the opportunity to become active citizens and contribute to the development of their country. The great contributions of volunteers towards development are annually celebrated on the 5th of December, International Volunteer Day. People around the world take time to pause and reflect on the tremendous contribution of civil society towards a more just world and volunteerism is specifically acknowledged as an important catalyst for social transformation. This year, UNV wants to highlight the contributions of volunteers towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Bangladesh. The eight MDGs, which range from halving extreme poverty to providing universal primary education, form a blueprint agreed by all worlds countries. Bangladesh is one of the top performing least developed countries and has achieved great successes, especially in the provision of education and the reduction of maternal and neonatal mortality. When talking about the MDGs and the many positive changes that occurred in the last decade in Bangladesh, we should not forget that it is people who change their world. To achieve these fundamental, but ambitious, development goals it requires much more than the involvement of governments and the international community. Of course policies play an important role, but in the end it is the knowledge, solidarity and creativity of millions of people that ensure the sustainability of our achievements. The stories below show what change can occur because of an individuals decision. They only exemplify the many ways in which volunteers contribute to positive and sustainable change in Bangladesh and many more stories could be told. We hope that the stories remind everyone that it is the small changes that really make a difference and change peoples lives.

Miriam Ebner n

n Bangladesh, volunteering and mutual help are core values of society: around 16 million people annually decide to get involved in their community and volunteer. Interestingly, volunteerism in Bangladesh is neither restricted to a specific sector nor to any age group. Old and young, men and women, they all dedicate their time to change society from within, playing an important role in transforming society. Volunteerism permeates every aspect of society. Many volunteers

Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger: Sajal Roy

When talking about the MDGs and the many positive changes that occurred in the last decade in Bangladesh, we should not forget that it is people who change their world
In recent years, Bangladeshis have repeatedly proven that they are willing to volunteer for their community, regardless of financial incentives and other forms of recognition. The spontaneous urge to help each other became obvious following the complete collapse of the Rana Plaza building in April, when hundreds of people flocked to Savar to assist in rescue efforts. Rickshaw-pullers, street vendors, university students and day laborers joined hands and worked tirelessly alongside the rescue operations teams of the Fire Service and Civil Defense, saving 2,500 people from the rubble. Many different volunteer-based The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is the United Nations (UN) organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. Since 1975, when the first international UN Volunteer started his assignment in Bangladesh, hundreds of UN Volunteers have supported different UN Agencies, government offices and civil society organizations. Every year passionate Bangladeshi volunteer abroad through UNV: they strengthen development programmes in countries like Sudan, Pakistan, Jamaica and Cote dIvoire. On International Volunteer Day, we look at the achievements and celebrate volunteerism worldwide.

Since its establishment, Jege Otho Foundation fully relies on committed volunteers to plan and implement projects several days a week in schools, public spaces and the Jege Otho training center in Jessore. Sajal is the coordinator of PATSHALA, a game school where children and youths can come together to develop life skills in an informal setting. Many underprivileged kids from poor backgrounds come together and play football, cricket as well as discussing personal issues with the volunteers of Jege Otho. Sajal believes that through exercise and the experience of a safe space, they will develop mentally as well as physically. Even though we do not directly reduce poverty by for example distributing food items, I think our work contributes in many ways to society Sajal says.

Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women: Rowshon Akhter Urmee

Violence against women is a critical issue in Bangladesh. The youth-led Brave Men campaign aims at raising awareness on the issue by addressing concepts of masculinity. Urmee believes that gender stereotypes effect everyone and many boys are socialized in a context where violence against women either verbal or physical is accepted by society. Together with some friends she started to hold workshops on gender in boys schools. Their aim is to deconstruct the concept of bravery which is often closely connected to violence against women of teenage boys. The completely volunteer-based movement runs 2-month workshops in different schools and is happy to contribute to gender equality.

Reduce Child Mortality: Minjoon Kim

Minjoon Kim decided to serve as an international UN Volunteer in 2012 and moved from Seoul to Dhaka. Minjoon is supporting UNICEF as an international UN Volunteer, is part of a team that gives trainings and support to hospitals and community workers on newborn care practices in Tangail district. When he arrived in Bangladesh, he was nervous: Did I have the necessary skills? Would my experience as surgeon be enough? were the questions he asked himself. After several field trips and discussions with colleagues, he grew confident. Now, he supports local NGOs in the monitoring process and conducts trainings with community help workers and implementing partners. He is part of a project that contributed to the globally acknowledged success in reducing under-5 mortality rate.

Achieve Universal Primary Education: Daina Chakma

As a national UN Volunteer, Daina Chakma has been supporting the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Facility of UNDP. As an Educational Assistant she worked with communities to strengthen community education project: many people joined the project and volunteered in the renovation and constructions of schools by providing local materials and free labor. Through the construction of these schools, access to education was improved in many remote communities and children do not have to walk long distances to go to school. Daina believes that education is key for peoples development and really enjoyed her volunteer service.

Improve Maternal Health: Halima, Jesmin and Farida

During their nursing training, Halima, Jesmin and Farida witnessed the dangers of childbirth for women as well as newborns first hand. Since then, these three dedicated women have dedicated a lot of time and energy to improving maternal health and are part of the first group of certified midwives in Bangladesh. They met during a training course for midwifery and decided to create the Bangladesh Midwifery Society (BMS), an organization that advocates for their profession and offers trainings for nurses to become midwives. Next to their regular job as midwives and nurses, they are midwifery trainers and are board members of the BMS. The BMS offers a support structure for newly certified midwives and plays an important role in consolidating this new profession within the medical system in Bangladesh.

Combat HIV/Aids, Malaria and other Diseases: Sharif Kaukab

Since the early 1990s, Sharif Kaukab has been serving as an international UN Volunteer in many different countries, such as Liberia, Nigeria and now Bangladesh. As the UN physician, he supports staff members and their families and plays an important role in the well-being of many people. As an experienced doctor, he has seen the devastating effects of global public health issues such as HIV/Aids and malaria. These two illnesses cause many deaths worldwide and Sharif believes that one reason for this is lack of knowledge. Thus, it is important to spread information on these issues, for example through community talks. He believes that an open and pro-active approach is essential to stop the spread of HIV: access to treatment and a non-discriminatory way of engaging with HIV-infected people build an important basis for preventative methods to be fruitful.

What will happen after 2015?

The MDGs, which have formed and defined the global development discourse in the past years, have played an important role in focusing on core development issues. While we are getting closer to our deadline, people all over the world are discussing the next development framework. The United Nations has taken up the challenge to ensure that the next development framework comes out of a transparent and open global debate, in which civil society organizations can share their vision for post-2015. Together with three youth-led organizations, namely JAAGO, Youth Power in Social Action (YPSA) and Jege Otho Foundation, UNV has organized and facilitated three youth consultations in Jessore, Chittagong and Dhaka, allowing youths to share their thoughts on the next development framework. Over 80 young people representing 30 organizations came together and discussed issues close to their heart, like the lack of equality in access to information, education, employment, health facilities and basic rights. Their visionary thinking clearly showed that they are not only looking at their community, their region or their country, but rather aspire to a movement for global equality. The results of the youth consultations will be published in January 2014 and are supplemental to the already published Report on the Post-2015 Development Agenda for Bangladesh.

Ensure Environmental Sustainability: Sharmin Bulbul Lita

The Noazesh Knowledge Center (NKC) was founded in 2011 by the NGO WildTeam, which focuses on the protection of the Bengal Tiger and nature conservation. The NKC provides information on conservation and environmental issues to the public. 450 young members from different socio-economic backgrounds use the library or go on study trips to learn about environmental challenges in Bangladesh. Volunteers play a crucial role in the activities of the NKC: The center, which has only two paid staff members, relies on volunteers for activities such as data-collection, data entry, and support in organizing events, such as the Rikshaw challenge in February 2013, where 20 activists cycled from Teknaf to Chandpai to spread the message of tiger protection and environmental conservation. The latter is directly linked to reducing the effects of climate change and thus contributes to reducing the threats of natural disasters.

A Global Partnership for Development: Mohammad Mamun Mia

When I enrolled in university, I started to volunteer at the United Nations Youth and Student Association of Bangladesh (UNYSAB), which was a game-changer for me. After volunteering in the organization for some years, I am now working as the President of UNYSAB. By joining UNYSAB or participating in the activities, students get the chance to work on a variety of social and global issues, such as the spread of HIV or the development of a global partnership. We introduce the United Nations to youth and encourage young people to inform themselves and participate in a global network created by different UN student groups all over the world. We promote volunteering because we see volunteerism as a means to develop leadership skills. Giving back to the community and advocating for the rights of groups at the margins of society are essential characteristics of good leadership.

If you want to read more on volunteering for the MDGs or have questions and comments, please contact: unvbgd.bd@undp.org. Miriam Ebner is UNV Programme Officer, Bangladesh.