To commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, Brac has organized a webinar titled “Breaking the barriers of poverty: New priorities in poverty reduction in the backdrop of Covid-19.”
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is held annually on October 17, worldwide.
This year, non-government development organization Brac organized the webinar with the main objective of calling attention to the initiatives that the government and development partners are taking to attain SDG-1 (No poverty), especially now as efforts for economic recovery after Covid-19 are underway.
Brac’s fight against poverty and Covid-19 response in the field level was also discussed in this webinar.
The webinar was attended by Judith Herbertson, development director of Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, Bangladesh; Mercy Miyang Tembon, country director of World Bank, Bangladesh and Bhutan; Syed M Hashemi, former senior advisor of The World Bank; and Shameran Abed, senior director of Microfinance and Ultra-Poor Graduation, Brac and Brac International.
Webinar arranged by Brac to observe the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17, 2020 Courtesy
Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, former adviser to the caretaker Government of Bangladesh and chairperson of Brac, served as chair of the webinar.
At the discussions, Tembon said: “Bangladesh has very good policy, what is required is effective implementation on the ground and utilization of resources. More opportunity has to be created in the economy, and vulnerable people can use social safety nets to build their resilience against disasters.”
Judith Herbertson, while complementing Bangladeshi peoples’ resilience, mentioned that more focus needs to be put on the right targeting for social safety net programs. She emphasized innovation and the government’s various development plans during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman mentioned that we need to consider social justice and tolerance in poverty reduction.
Since 1972, Brac has been at the forefront of poverty reduction activities in Bangladesh. Brac has supported more than 2 million households and helped them graduate from ultra-poverty in Bangladesh since 2002 through its flagship Ultra Poor Graduation Program. The program is the pioneer of the “Graduation approach,” a globally recognized model for tackling ultra-poverty.
