Bangladesh is playing a leading role in the global efforts to alleviate poverty, said Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah, the Principal Secretary to the Honorable Prime Minister. He was speaking as the Chief Guest at the ‘National Workshop on PPEPP-EU Project at Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) in Agargaon today.
Stating that both the poverty and the extreme poverty rates in Bangladesh have significantly decreased over the past decade and a half, he said this tremendous progress has been driven by a combined force of the government’s various people-centric and time-befitting initiatives and an effective support from the development partner partners.
A primary goal of the Bangladesh government, the Principal Secretary continued, is to eradicate extreme poverty and long-term, sustainable initiatives are prerequisites to the achievement of this goal.
The workshop was organized under the ‘Pathways to Prosperity for Extremely Poor People – European Union (PPEPP-EU)’ project, implemented by PKSF with funding from the European Union (EU). It aims to lift approximately 860,000 extremely poor people from 215,000 households in 145 unions across 34 upazilas in 12 climate-vulnerable districts where the poverty rate is high. The 22.81 million EURO (grant) project provides support for resilient livelihoods, inclusive finance, nutrition and primary healthcare, women’s empowerment, disability inclusion, climate resilience building, and community mobilization. This workshop aimed to inform relevant stakeholders about the project’s learnings and to increase the support of government and other service providers in addressing challenges in the field.
Charles Whitely, the EU Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh, spoke at the event as the Guest of Honor. He said that the EU and Bangladesh last year celebrated 50 years of friendship and the PPEPP-EU project is a reflection of this longstanding cooperation. Despite Bangladesh’s significant progress on economic, infrastructural and humanitarian indices over the past five decades, the prevalence of extreme poverty remains scathingly high in certain regions like the Haor and coastal areas of the country. Thus, he added, special attention must continue to be given to these areas.
PKSF Chairman Dr M Khairul Hossain, who presided over the workshop, commented that the PPEPP-EU project was planned and designed, and is now being implemented in light of PKSF’s decades-long experience in combatting extreme poverty in Bangladesh. Though the project’s progress is promising, sustained efforts are needed to achieve the desired goals, he added.
In the welcome remarks, PKSF Managing Director Dr. Nomita Halder ndc described the PPEPP-EU project as an innovative initiative, stating that it addresses challenging issues such as disability and salinity, addressing which requires long-term, multidimensional approaches.
In the workshop, participants from various parts of the project’s working area shared their experiences and the benefits they received from the project. Additionally, a panel discussion was held on different components of the project, which has been in implementation since 2022, and a video documentary was showcased.
In the workshop, participants from various parts of the project’s working area shared their experiences and the benefits they received from the project. Additionally, a panel discussion was held on different components of the project, which has been in implementation since 2022, and a video documentary was showcased.