With an objective to enable and empower adolescent girls through relevant career guidance and information, CARE Bangladesh brings upon ‘Amar Shwapno, Amar Golpo' – a booklet primarily catered to married and unmarried adolescent girls.
The book was launched through an event on Wednesday at Chameli House, CIRDAP, reads a press release.
The chief guest of the event was Prof Nehal Ahmed, Director General (DG), the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE).
Other attendees were Md Selimul Islam, Deputy Director (Planning), Department of Youth Development; Jannatul Ferdous, Research Officer (Planning) and former Project Director, Accelerating Action to End Child Marriage project in Bangladesh, Department of Women Affairs; Huraira Farhanaz, Program Analyst, Gender, Adolescent & Youth, UNFPA Bangladesh, Raju Das, Project Officer, Adolescent & Youth and Child Marriage, UNFPA Bangladesh and Rawnak Jahan, Acting Director, Women & Female Child Empowerment, CARE Bangladesh.
‘Amar Shwapno, Amar Golpo' has been developed by CARE Bangladesh, supported by UNFPA Bangladesh under the Accelerating Action to End Child Marriage project.
The booklet mentions career options across 46 professions under 10 sectors, including Education and Research, Health and Medicine, Engineering and Architecture, Media and Games, Defense, etc.
In regards to the launch, Prof Nehal Ahmed said: “Proper career advice and pathways can play a pivotal role in enabling young girls to step out and build their own lives. ‘Amar Shwapno, Amar Golpo' is hence a great initiative. UNFPA and DSHE could collaborate for institutionalizing the booklet in the Secondary Schools which will bring the young girls a step closer to their aspirations.'
Jannatul Ferdous said: “The Career Pathway Booklet ‘Amar Shwapno, Amar Golpo' is designed to help young girls who are looking to achieve their dreams but are unable to put the first step. Comprising of several career options across industries, the booklet is an initiative to guide our adolescent girls towards empowerment and independence.”
Md Selimul Islam said: “This Career guide will help adolescent girls to create dreams for their future planning, and we are very happy to see the trades from DYD were reflected in the booklet.”
"Negative societal norms can prevent girls from reaching their goals. It is essential that we collaborate to create an atmosphere where girls can grow and achieve their ambitions. The Career Pathway Booklet is a step toward achieving this objective” said Humaira Farhanaz.
Raju Das said: “It is a pleasure for us to launch this resourceful booklet for the adolescent girls of Bangladesh to have information for mapping and identifying the opportunities to make them empowered for the future.”
“It is of utmost importance for us to collectively focus on educating our young girls on the career options available in the country. They must be able to achieve their aspirations by utilizing their inner strengths and capacities, which is only possible through proper guidance. And that is exactly what CARE Bangladesh is offering through this booklet” said Rownak Jahan.
It is mentionable that, Accelerating Action to End Child Marriage of UNFPA Bangladesh is designed to empower adolescent girls (both married and unmarried) by providing them with knowledge and skill sets on SRHR (Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights), gender, communication, negotiation, and self-reflection. These lessons are delivered through the structured life-skills education program and engagement with key influential community members.