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Women remain among the most vulnerable and disempowered groups in Bangladesh. Cultural practices such as early marriage, polygamy, dowry, female seclusion, and arbitrary (oral) divorce contribute to women’s subordinate status; while religion has been used to sanction these practices. Lack of awareness of their rights coupled with deeply rooted gender inequalities seriously constrains women’s access to appropriate, gender-sensitive justice. NU thus works to empower women and promote their effective participation in Shalish procedures and other community decision-making processes and activities.
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Provisions and Strategies
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• Leadership capacity-building of grassroots women’s group leaders, including elected women members of the union council
• Enhancing effective participation of women leaders in the local development committees as well as social activities, including participation in community mediation
• Initiating women’s group meetings to develop awareness of legal and human rights
• Monitoring Shalish procedures to ensure the enforcement of women’s rights
• Extending the provision of legal aid to women
• Establishment of a network between the elected women representatives and women’s groups/leaders
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Impacts and Achievements
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• Increased number of women leaders at community level and increased status of women in social decision-making process
• Increased number of women receiving legal aid; frequently for the first time
• Increased confidence and attendance of women in Shalish and awareness-raising workshops and programmes
• Attendance at community level women’s rights meetings by elected representatives
• NU’s facilitation of annual grassroots level Bangladeshi women leaders’ conferences in NU project areas
• Women at community level now organize and manage a regular newsletter called Narir Shopno patha (Women’s Dream Pages)
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