Contents

Contents..................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction: ........................................................................................................... 2 History of NGO in Bangladesh:.................................................................................2 Services provided to the target group and to the wider community: .......................2 Functions of NGO: ................................................................................................... 3 Some of the merits of NGO:......................................................................................3 Demerits of NGO:.....................................................................................................4 Poverty reduction and NGO programs in Bangladesh:..............................................4 Conclusion:.............................................................................................................. 6 Source:.................................................................................................................... 7

Poverty eradication and the role of NGO in Bangladesh

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Introduction:
Definition of NGO: Autonomous bodies of individuals form voluntarily, to pursue some common goals, general and specific with support from private state, local or international institution.

History of NGO in Bangladesh:

Basically, NGO activities were limited to religious trust, school, hospital, orphanage or social reform based. After the liberation war of Bangladesh (i.e. 1971) NGO appeared as agents of development. At first NGO started as relief organization in the backdrop of cyclone of 1970. The motive of NGO was to reconstruct the devastated economy after the liberation. By the help of NGO operations in rural areas the poor people reduced depending on traditional power structure which was corrupting the system by means of domination. Root cause of poverty was structural and NGO plays a leading role in transforming the power structure. Organizations such as BRAC, ASA, NIJERA KORI, PROSIKA and several others engaged in social transformation movements. However, the social transformation movement led to confrontation situation with the local Elite and sometimes with the state itself. These days NGO provides services to the target group and the wider community in the country.

Services provided to the target group and to the wider community:

NGO provides services to health care, family planning, legal aid, non-formal primary education and micro-credit finance. Bangladesh has earned international recognition in the delivery of micro-credit finance. Dr. Yunus won nobel price for the Grameen bank service to the poor people of Bangladesh.
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Functions of NGO:
Credit Employment generation Women development Non-formal education Political participation Health and nutrition knowledge Family planning Environment

Some of the merits of NGO:

Capacity to: 1. Reach the poor and remote areas. 2. Promote local participation. 3. Work with other agencies. 4. Understand local institutions and socio-cultural environment. 5. Act quickly. 6. Work with flexibility. 7. Take risk and experiments. 8. Innovate and adopt. 9. Operate on low cost.
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10.

Facilitate local resources mobilization and ensure local

development. 11. Advocacy.

Demerits of NGO:
1. Limited responsibility. 2. Limited self sustainability. 3. Limited technical capacity. 4. Lack of broad programming content. 5. Limited ability to reach the poorest segment of the society. 6. Inability to scale up activities. 7. Dependency to donors. 8. Paternalistic approach. 9. Centralized operation.

Poverty reduction and NGO programs in Bangladesh:

In only a little over 3 decades as an independent country, Bangladesh has made significant progress in reducing poverty and improving the lives of its people. However, nearly half of its population of 135 million stills lives below the poverty line as measured by income, consumption, and ability to meet basic human needs making Bangladesh one of the poo rest countries in the world. (World Bank: 2003) Poverty reduction in the 1990s was successful due to strong, sustained economic growth but continuation of this progress is facing severe challenges. Incomplete national reforms in areas such as health, electricity and banking
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and increasing losses by government owned enterprises are threatening both government budgets and national economic growth. A lack of public confidence in the integrity and efficiency of the countrys political and administrative institutions is hindering healthy economic activity, and a population growth rate which remains unsustainable is threatening to erode past progress. For Bangladesh to continue on its current path of reducing poverty and improving living conditions, it will need to sustain macroeconomic growth at levels higher than in the past; reform public institutions; improve social services; and make stronger efforts to increase participation in the economy by the countrys poorest people (ibid). NGO approach to poverty alleviation and human development in Bangladesh includes innovative approaches like conscientization, holistic and minimalist (Newaz:2003). According to the conscientization approach, the roots of poverty are disorganized social, economic and political lives. It requires a long term solution to reduce poverty. So, the awareness building programs of NGOs have opportunities to work meaning fully in this respect. The holistic approach programs require focusing on non-formal education, social and political awareness building and political mobilization to confront patriarchal power structure, particularly for women, to address the gender subordination. On the other hand, the minimalist approach supports providing credit within minimal training or other supplementary support services. Because, it is assumed that the rural poor need more than consciousness, they need Material assistance to help them generate income. It is estimated that nearly 80% of the villages in Bangladesh are now covered under NGO activities but not necessarily 80% of the poor who need help. About 1,000 NGOs are engaged in microfinance operations. The overwhelming majority of these NGOs are small: the few large NGOs are BRAC, PROSHIKA AND ASA. BRAC happens to be the largest NGO in the world today. About 95% of micro credit disbursed by the NGOs in the rural areas. As of June 1999, the total number of active members benefiting from
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NGO programs stood at 8.7 millions, 85% of the beneficiaries being women. Micro-credit is provided to the poor for self-employment, income generating activities, afforestation and other poverty alleviating programs (internet source).

Conclusion:
The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child morality, improve maternal health, ensure environmental sustainability, development a global partnership for development all by the target date of 2015 form a blueprint agreed to by all the worlds countries and all the worlds leading development institutions. They have galvanized unprecedented efforts to meet the needs of the worlds poorest. These
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been considering as the pivot of

developing in the world as in Bangladesh centering poverty reduction. In Bangladesh all development activities as well as programs of government (GOB) and NGOs are projecting in line with MDGs. It is not accurate that people of very corner of Bangladesh simultaneously face all the challenges to overcome poverty. Particular poverty reduction programs in particular area for particular people are feasible to reduce poverty. The challenge is especially for the small scale local NGOs to take action in this way. The locally organized or even some big NGOs fighting against poverty may not give a positive result unless their programs are not set forth matching with the particular needs of particular people in a particular area.
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Source:

i. Class notes. ii. Internet.

iii.

Newspaper. Discussions

iv.

v. Television.