Community Resilience through Women in Leadership Roles
Status
completed
City
Dhaka
Main actors
NGO / Philanthropy, Community / Citizen Group
Project area
Neighborhood or district
Duration
2013 - 2015
A programme to provide women living in slums leadership skills and risk reduction training.
Over many years, slum settlements have been increasing in Dhaka city. Commencing in 1996, the Participatory Development Action Program (PDAP) has been working in slum areas addressing issues such as basic education, primary health care, skills development training, adolescents’ awareness raising and women’s advocacy.
Poor households and the women within slum communities are especially vulnerable as they are resonsible for care giving, and they lack access to and control over resources and services. For example, their ability to increase their daily income, effecting food security, is impeded by concerns of eviction from their homes. While the High Court has declared that “Without rehabilitation, there will be no eviction”, slum dwellers are often forced to leave their shelters, without rehabilitation.
To respond to these issues, the PDAP initiated an action plan to increase community resilience through Leadership building and disaster risk reduction training. The action plan was implemented in the slum of Bhola Bastee in Mirpur, Dhaka (Bangladesh). In twelve months, the action plan has reached 100 women.
Sustainable Development Goals
The Participatory Development Action Program (PDAP) was launched on 6 March 1994. PDAP works with people whose lives are dominated by extreme poverty, illiteracy, disease and other environmental problems. With multifaceted development interventions, PDAP strives to bring about positive change in the quality of life for these people, especially women, adolescents and children. PDAP is committed to making its programs socially, financially and environmentally sustainable using new methods and technologies. PDAP is actively involved in promoting human rights, dignity and gender equity.
The slum dwellers living in Bhola Bastee in Mirpur, Dhaka (Bangladesh) come from different areas of the Barishal district. Due to river erosion they have lost their property, resources and shelter and are very poor. Most of them are Richshaw pullers, vegetable and fish sellers, garment workers or home workers.
The Participatory Development Action Program has been engaged in the following activities:
- Identification of challenges in the area through mapping and household survey;
- Training in leadership development skills;
- Awareness raising activities on empowerment issues;
- Teaching the Local to Local methodolog;
- Use of the Local to Local methodology within the community and at a national level workshop.
The organized groups received leadership training as well as disaster risk reduction training from the Participatory Development Action Program. PDAP also encouraged them to contact NGOs directly to address their problems. The groups' leaders contacted World Vision, DSK and the Association for Realisation of Basic Needs (ARBAN).
As a result, the NGO DSK provided some sanitation facilities.
Road repair requires permission from the local Member of Parliament, a group of women living in the slum area applied for permission for the work to be done by World Vision. World vision have organised the repair of the road by providing slabs of concrete to cover the open drains.
Other NGOs have shared their experience with the Participatory Action Development Program.
Ms. Naseem Sheikh, member of the Senior Management Team of SSP India ("Empowering women as leaders and entrepreneurs"), came to the Participatory Development Action Program to share her experience with the program leaders. She said that in their area, Maharastra, they do everything through the community group members. She gave a power point presentation, explaining about the Community Practitioners Platform for resilience ("an organizing and networking mechanism connecting grassroots community based groups working to reduce their vulnerability to disaster and climate risks in rural and urban areas") and how they improved their community through this platform and are now self-sustainable.
- Community Resilience through Women Leadership - A Case study on Bhola slum of Mirpur, Participatory Development Action Program
External links / documents
Want to know more about this project?
Photo gallery
Do you like this project?
Related case studies
Caracas, Venezuela
A Metrocable for community development in the C...
The Caracas Metrocable re-connects a poor hillside neighbourhood with the city focusing on social infrastructure and community development.
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
The Edinburgh Guarantee
Edinburgh has inspired cultural change across the public, private and third sectors to address unemployment among school leavers. A shared vision and strong partnerships are helping them find a job, modern apprenticeship or training, and make successful transitions into the world of work.
Nice, France
27 Delvalle: an urban health living lab
The City of Nice is responding to a growing community need for providing senior citizens with quality at home healthcare by establishing a centre dedicated to digital health innovation.