Rich-poor gap widens in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, People’s Forum on MDGs (PFM) and its partners organized a series of activities to mark July 7, 2007 as a day for coordinated global action to remind governments and all stakeholders to keep their promise to end poverty and create a safer and more equitable world. The Independent Civil Society Report 2007 on progress of MDGs was released on 07.07.07 by the People’s Forum on MDGs (PFM), the GCAP alliance in Bangladesh at the National Press Club in observance of the halfway 2015 deadline. The report says Bangladesh will not be able to achieve its MDG targets at the current slow pace unless urgent interventions are sought through effective action plans and crucial budgetary support. It mentions regional imbalance in development, higher birth rates among the poor, negligence toward women and newborns, poor public healthcare services, low quality of education, and inefficient resource utilization as the major shortcomings of the country in attaining the MDGs by 2015. On a positive note, poverty has declined; but again, in an uncertain manner. The disparity between the rich and poor is widening day by day. The high incidence of maternal mortality and low nutritional status of both adults and children remain major areas of concern, the report claims. The convener of the PFM and a member of IFT-GCAP, Rasheda K. Chowdhury stressing on the findings of the report, said Bangladesh would not be able to achieve even “the minimalist MDG targets” at the current pace of national development. “It is the responsibility of us all, apart from the government, to take renewed initiative to overcome the slow pace of progress,” she added. Documenting the fight for rights The premier of Bhumi (Land), a documentary on the continual struggle of the landless poor to gain access to land – the fight for their basic rights – was held at Drik Gallery, Dhaka. The film expresses the anguish and misery faced by the landless poor in the quest for their rights to a piece of “Khas” (public) land and their initiatives to bring an end to the viciousness of poverty, and to creates scope for participation in the economic growth process. Access to land remains an unfulfilled dream for many in Bangladesh. PFM, the Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE) and Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD) co-produced Bhumi under the direction of Morshedul Islam, an internationally famed Bangladeshi filmmaker. The show was largely attended by representatives of women’s movements, trade unions, youth groups, teachers’ federations, NGOs and other groups of civil society including media professionals. Bhumi was also telecast late night on ATN Bangla, a private TV Channel. PFM Bangladesh plans to use this documentary as a tool for raising public awareness and pressurizing decision makers for pro-poor land reform plans and practices. Some other programmes carried out by a number of PFM members on 07.07.07 at Dhaka were the Prip Trust and Oxfam-GB Round Table discussion on the current status of Bangladesh at the mid-point of MDGs and a Hunger Free World discussion on MDGs. The WAVE Foundation held a meeting on Achieving Universal Education at Dhaka and Chuadanga district. On July 6, 2007, a press briefing on Campaign for Good Governance on the MDG mid-point report was held at the Reporters Unity office, Dhaka. For more information, contact: Sayed-ul-Alam Kazal Secretariat Coordinator, PFM Bangladesh & Program Manager, CAMPE. For an overview of the report see below:

Attached files

An Overview of the Independent Civil Society Report 200.27 KB

An Overview of the Independent Civil Society Report

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