By Marty Corley and Jacqueline de Leeuw
Photos by Roobon
The Investors' Trip to Bangladesh from the 9th through the 14th of February was inspiring for everyone involved. Seventeen investor/activists from 4 countries (UK, US, the Netherlands and Australia) met with Bangladeshi activists who are ending their own hunger.
As you know, Animators are key to the mobilization and all the strategies for ending hunger in Bangladesh. We started our visit by attending ½ day of the 4 day Animators' Training, Batch #600. While we were there, the Animators were engaging with the concepts of Unleashing the Human Spirit and Interconnectedness.
We made visits in 4 different areas - Dhaka, Sonargaon, Rangpur and
Gaibandha.
We visited 6 schools at different areas; kindergartens (first 5 classes),
vocational and government school. Most of these schools were started by
people after they took the Animator training.
We saw the work of many self-help groups and cooperatives founded by Animators. They are working together with savings: each member is contributing a few takas a week so the cooperative is having thousands of takas, for members to use for income-generating projects. They showed us cow-fattening, chicken and goat raising, kitchen gardens and sewing clothing for selling. One group in the Sonargaon area set up a library which now has 2000 volumes (Bangla and English). It is encouraging education and literacy.
We walked around in small groups in two villages: speaking with women and children in the villages, seeing their homes and livelihoods and learning how they were using the principles of THP to improve the quality of their lives tremendously.
We visited 2 different slums in Dhaka. In the second slum of Rayer Bazar, Shanti a local Animator has mobilized women to collect trash (as a business) which is resulting in a much cleaner environment. She also started a primary school where her daughter became one of the teachers. The children there are eager and excited about learning.
We met with 2 Union Parishad (local government) bodies. At the first UP of Kolkanda every member has completed the Animator training which enables them to work together more powerfully and with more focus to achieve their vision. Two examples of their commitment were evident during our visit. They launched a campaign with touring entertainers that will help people in their area understand the 5 goals they have for the Union:
To improve communication and access to one of the villages during all seasons, road improvement needed to be made. The UP declared the day of our visit as Spade Day and hundreds of villagers were mobilized to improve the road. We were part of this.
We learned that the strategy of THP Bangladesh of training the Union
members is very effective in creating an enabling environment, in assuring
access of resources to the people at the grassroots level and to put
pressure at the policy level.
We were part of several meetings led by powerful women Animators. At one
meeting when the men were asked how they feel about women becoming strong
leaders, they all said that they were very happy because women were now
their partners.
In Ramna Park in Dhaka we attended a meeting led by Animators. They are
giving VCA workshops there now for 10 years. We could see with our own eyes
how people were drawn in and attracted to be with people who are unleashed.
Some of them might decide that they will attend a VCA workshop and become
Animators. There are now 50,000 Animators and the goal is 100,000 in 2005.
The momentum is building.
In addition to all this there was also a lot of fun like playing cricket
with the children at schools and a lot of singing.
We made sure that everybody knows that we are their true partners on their
pathway of ending their own hunger and the hunger still persisting in
Bangladesh. Dr. Badiul Majumdar and Rafiqul Islam Sarkar assured us that our
partnership has encouraged everyone we have met. Peoples' pride in the
results that they have already produced, their perseverance and resilience
were so visible and so inspiring for all of us. It will impact immensely the
work that we all are going to do when we are at home.
Post trip: Kaaren Peter stayed on a bit longer and attended the National Celebration of "Language Day." in which The Hunger Project played a major role.
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