Lives better off with awareness about rights
Amena Khatun
The Daily Star
May 6, 2009
Shova Das is now a different woman than she used to be.
"Five years ago, I did not dare to talk to strangers. My husband used to torture me even on the plea of trifling mistakes. But now he accepts my opinions and acts accordingly," said a confident Shova, a resident of Kaulatia in Joydevpur, Gazipur.
All these changes became possible for her due to Reflect Circle, a project run by ActionAid Bangladesh, which is playing an important role in improving the living standards of marginalised people in many areas of the country only through providing training and raising awareness about their rights.
Shova said she also can earn Tk 2000 a month using her needlework skills she learned in a programme under the project.
Not only Shova, but also Jamirun, Chandana and other women of the village now can read and write. They are also aware of negative impacts of child marriage and dowry system.
Around 80 percent of the total 1800 people in the village are now aware of their rights and perform their duties sincerely. Being motivated by the Reflect Circle, they solve their problems in a more organised way.
Like every year, the villagers observed the Reflect Asia Day on April 24 at Kaulatia village. This year, the slogan of the day was 'Prioritising adult literacy to accelerate development'.
Talking to The Daily Star, some women members of the Reflect Circle, said the women now send their children to school and try to solve their problems on their own or in consultation with the local leaders.
With the help of ActionAid, the Population Services and Training Centre (PSTC) has been working with the poor and marginalised people to ensure their empowerment and improve the quality of their lives and livelihoods through Reflect Circle at Kaulaita and Salna villages in Joydevpur since 2007.
ActionAid Bangladesh through its partner organisations has been running some 66 Reflect Circles across the country to promote literacy.
The circle inculcates a feeling of both right and responsibility in villagers.
"We have learnt from the circle how to protect our rights," said Chandana Banu of North Salna village.
She said that she has equal responsibility to maintain her family and that she would never marry off her daughter at the early age.
Majeda Akter, a 20-year-old girl, said, "The circle gave us courage to unitedly protest against any injustices."
"I learned about family law and the right to property," said Jamirun Begum.
Abdul Malek, a headmaster of a primary school, said, "The circle enables poor people to plan their development activities based on local reality."
Milon Bikash Paul, executive director of PSTC, said, "In the Reflect Circle, the poor and marginalised people share their joys and sorrows and hopes and inspirations as well as solve their various problems on their own."
"The Reflections Approach focuses on literacy, counting and life-oriented education, including occupational health, immunisation programme and needlework," he added.
About Reflection Approach, Zakir Hossain Sarker, deputy manager of Reflect Development Unit (RDU) of ActionAid Bangladesh, said, "It is a participatory process for collective analysis and empowerment through literacy."
"The main objective of the programme is to ensure education for all as 58 percent of adult population are still illiterate although the official figure is 36 percent," he said.
To ensure education for all, a Millennium Development Goal, the government should address the issue of adult illiteracy immediately, he observed.