The New Nation - Internet Edition

DEU best report prize 2008 declared

Staff Reporter

Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) yesterday announced the " Best Report Prize 2008" for the best report of the year.

The winners are Shariffuzaman Pintu (Prothom Alo) Presidential award for education affairs report, Afroza Nazneen (Khabarpotra) Bhorer Kagoj award for torture on women and children report, Julfikar Ali Manik and Sayed Ashfakul Haque (Daily Star) jointly FBCCI award for investigative economic affairs report, Helal Uddin (Jugantar) and Mizan Chowdhury (Janakanta) jointly DCCI award for objective economic affairs report, Masud Alam (Prothom Alo) Navana award for sports report, Helimul Alam Biplab (Daily Star) Shaheed Jaya Hasnahena Smrity award for Liberation War affairs report, Selim Jahid (Samakal) Hedayat Hossain Murshed Smrity award for humanity affairs report, Kishwar Laila (Bangla Vision) for TV reporting, Keramat Ullah Biplab (Channel i ) Dhaka City Corporation award for investigative city report.

Boost aid to developing countries to combat recession WB urges donors

UNB, Dhaka

The World Bank has called upon the donors to further boost aid as investment in developing countries heads for a "perfect storm" as fallout of the global economic recession.

"Developed country policymakers must avoid putting in place policies and structures that undermine the interests of developing countries," World Bank president Robert B. Zoellick said ahead of the international conference on Financing for Development in Doha, Qatar.

In a statement received here yesterday, he said many developing countries have taken courageous steps in recent years to introduce and maintain sound macroeconomic and fiscal policies.

"They now find themselves at the mercy of a crisis not of their making. A retreat to protectionism or economic nationalism by developed countries will hurt them even further," Zoellick said.

In a paper prepared for the Doha follow-up conference to review the implementation of the Monterrey Consensus, the Bank said it is imperative that donors meet their Gleneagles commitments to debt relief and scaled-up aid.

At present, G7 countries are falling $30 billion short of these goals.

According to the paper titled "The Implications of Global Crises on Developing Countries, the Millennium Development Goals, and the Monterrey Consensus, developing countries are facing a "perfect storm," with a convergence of slowing world growth, a withdrawal of equity and lending from the private sector, and higher interest rates."

Investment, the main driver of developing country growth over the past five years, will be hard hit by the financial crisis, and remittances from developing country migrants-a powerful poverty reduction mechanism-will likely decline in line with the global slowdown.

All this comes in the wake of the severe food and fuel price crises, which placed a heavy fiscal, economic and social burden on many developing countries.

To meet the growing needs, Zoellick has announced that the Bank Group will front load $42 billion it has available to support low-income (IDA) countries, including Bangladesh, over the next three years, and rely on its strong capital basis to lend up to $100 billion to developing countries over the same period.

Advocate Khalilur passes away

UNB, Dhaka

Former vice-president of Dhaka Bar Association Advocate AKM Khalilur Rahman died of cardiac arrest here yesterday. He was 79.

He left behind wife, three sons, daughter and a host of relatives to mourn his death. Khalilur, father of journalist and presenter of political talk-show 'Tritiya Matra' of Channel i, was buried in state honour after his namaz-e-janaza at New Eskaton.

SDF, WB project 10,000 villagers in 5 dists getting piped water supply

UNB, Dhaka

Drinking fresh water right from the tap is still a dream for millions of villagers in Bangladesh. But, it is a different story in 12 villages of five districts where some 10,000 people have had access to piped water supply, thanks to the World Bank and the Social Development Foundation for making it possible through a unique project.

The Social Development Foundation, which is implementing the government's Social Investment Program Project (SIPP) with assistance from the World Bank, launched the water pilot under 'Private Financing of Public Utilities' Scheme, an innovative model of public, private and people's participation.

The villages benefiting from this water pilot are Dorogram and Saturia Bazar in Sadar upazila of Manikganj, Ganipur and Shahidabad in Zakiganj upazila of Sylhet, Sufiabad, Chosna, Ghagra and Latimi in Sadar upazila of Feni, Puran Bausia in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj, Chamagram, Laharpur and Laxmipur in Chapainawabganj districts.

What is unique in this pilot is active participation and decision making by the communities; full ownership of managing and operating the system; and an innovative example of public-private and people's participation.

The special feature of this water pilot is the mandatory inclusion of vulnerable group or groups and poorer section in the service network, as the WB Grant aims to address the needs of the poor. "So, the tribal people, people with disability and vulnerable groups get the preference in bringing the communities under the service network," said an SDF official.

The growing fresh water crisis in the country has prompted SDF to go for such a project. In Bangladesh, tube-wells are widely used for domestic water supply, but the presence of arsenic, excess iron and other chemical contaminants in shallow aquifer have increased the vulnerability of safe water in the country.

Besides, tube-wells cannot meet the growing demand of water for drinking, primary healthcare and other household needs. There are areas in the country where thousands of women and children have to spend several hours everyday collecting water from distant but often polluted sources.

In 40 of the 50 diseases prevalent in Bangladesh, including diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid, parasitic worm infestation and polio, are caused by unsafe water.

But things have changed in the 12 villages. They are now getting safe treated water thrice a day and they have to pay Tk 100 for a single tap while Tk 120 for multiple taps and Tk 75 for a single shared tap (for vulnerable group) per month.

"Now I'm a very happy person, as I'm getting safe water sitting at home. I'm grateful to the sponsor, SDF and the World Bank for providing me safe water. It helps my grandchildren stay away from waterborne diseases," says Kulsum Begum, a 65-year-old widow who lives with her two grandchildren at Chosna village in Feni district. The sponsor here has so far connected about 345 households (53%).

Dorogram, a village of some 6000 people, is located 70 km off capital Dhaka. Some 418 households (82%), including all the vulnerable ones, have so far been brought under the water supply network.

"This water pilot is not only providing clean water, but it has also reduced the incidence of outbreak of waterborne diseases. Most importantly, this has eased the lives of women who used to fetch drinking water from distant sources," says Dorogram union parishad chairman Elahi Baksha.

Zarina Begum, wife of Misir Ali of Puran Bausia in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj district, says life has become much easier for her since she has got piped water connection at her home. "I got the connection by only paying Tk 1,000. There were days when I used go to our nearby river for taking my bath and now I'm doing that at home."

About the total project cost, the SDF official said it would range from Tk 6 to 8 million with the SDF providing 40 percent of it as grant, while the sponsors 50 percent and the rest 10 percent coming from the communities.

The six water pilots are being implemented with six participating sponsors under Build-Operate-Own (BOO) method. They are BROTEE, BURO Bangladesh, GONOSHASTYA KENDRA (GK), Hilful Fuzul Samaj Kalyan Sangstha (HFSKS), Masjid Council for Community Advancement (MACCA) and Mothers' Society.

The sponsors hope that they would be able to mark their success in encouraging private sector investment in water supply service delivery of Bangladesh.

There is nothing unique in safe water crisis in Bangladesh.

According to available information, over one billion people across the world lack access to safe water and waterborne diseases cause over 80 percent of illnesses in the developing world (third world nations). The United Nations has reported the death of over 6,000 people per day from such diseases with children being the worst victims.

At any given time, half of the world's hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from waterborne diseases and the situation in Bangladesh is even worse.

Woman sues husband for selling her to a brothel in Mumbai

UNB, Jessore

A young woman Thursday filed a case against her husband with Kotwali thana for selling her to a pimp, who forced her to engage in flesh trade at a brothel in Indian commercial city Mumbai.

According to the complaint, Asaduzzaman Ripon, son of late Idris Ali Sarder of Hajigram village in Digholia upazila of Khulna, married Kohinur Khatun of Chaulia village under the kotwali thana three years back.

After the marriage, he demanded Tk 1.50 lakh as dowry from her parents. A case was filed with the chief judicial magistrate court on July 17 this year in this connection. Later, following an understanding accused Ripon recently took his wife to his house.But Ripon on November 13 took his wife to India where he sold her to a pimp, Farida, two days later. The victim later found her at a brothel in Mumbai and afterwards she managed to flee with the help of a man on November 18.

After returning home Kohinur filed the case against Ripon.