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High Commissioner Mijarul Quayes (C) hosts an event highlighting success story of state and civil society partnership in Bangladesh.
Partnership between the state and civil society for bringing lasting change in Bangladesh has been highlighted at an event at the Royal Overseas League in London.
The Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK, Mijarul Quayes, hosted the evening reception organised in partnership with BRAC and Oxfam on Thursday night (local time).
Parliamentarians, diplomats, civil society representatives and members of the Bangladeshi diaspora attended the event, digital press officer of the Oxfam GB Rachel Cawood said in a press release.
She said the High Commissioner, in his welcome speech, provided an overview of the commendable improvement made by Bangladesh in socio-economic indicators, including being on track on many of the MDGs.
Mijarul Quayes highlighted the seminal role of the effective partnering between the civil society organisations and the state in this regard. In particular he lauded Oxfam’s support during Bangladesh’s Liberation War for which it has been awarded the Friends of the Liberation War Honour.
Oxfam also played an important role in the post-war reconstruction in Bangladesh, he added.
Quayes mentioned that although born in Bangladesh, BRAC is today an international NGO, and is engaged in changing the lives of people, not only in Bangladesh, but also around the world.
Speaking on the occasion BRAC UK’s Chief Executive Mary Garvey said: “Whilst huge challenges remain in areas such as child health and women’s empowerment Bangladesh has made amazing progress, supported by organisations such as Oxfam and BRAC.”
“The lessons learnt in Bangladesh have the potential to make huge differences in other communities across the world,” Garvey added.
Mark Goldring, Oxfam Chief Executive, said: “We are delighted to be recognising the hard work of staff of Oxfam and BRAC in Bangladesh, who are helping to make a real difference to people’s lives.
“But the work cannot stop now – there is still so much more that needs to be done. Bangladesh’s 580 km coastline is one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world and with climate change increasing the threat of storms and flooding, we need to ensure that people are prepared for disasters in the most effective way possible.”
Source: Bd news24