The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

A government programme launched nine months back to create rural job opportunities appeared to have benefitted largely the poor rural women offering them scopes to live with dignity and comfort.

With European Union assistance, the government launched the Rural Employment Opportunities for Public Assets (REOPA) earlier this year in 388 unions of six districts with an initial cost of nearly Taka 174 crore to create livelihood opportunities under rural infrastructure building activities.

The subarban Narsingdi is one of the six districts where the project was operating in 70 unions of six upazilas of the district.

Under the REOPA project, the selected women in the district require to work from 8 am to 2 pm in exchange of Taka 100 each for earth work of different village roads identified by union parishads.

From the salary, Taka 70 directly goes to each women while Taka 30 goes to her Bank account which she will get together after the end of her job cycle in two years.

"I can now dream of continuing the study of my children and doing small business of my own after two years cycle of my job in REOPA ends with my savings," said Rashida Begum, the team leader of the women working in Sadarchar union under the programme as she was talking to BSS correspondent.

She was close to tears as she described her ordeals after her husband became mentally retarded and left her abandoning three children but a flicker of hope shine in her eyes when she tried to explain what benefits REOPA had brought for her.

Abdul Baset, a 50 year old farmer of Sukundi village of Sadarchar union, was visibly happy to see the destitute women of his area had now opportunities to earn their living. "REOPA has created a good opportunity for some of our poor women in my area to work and earn their livelihood and lead a more dignified and independent life," Baset said.

Their comments were echoed by local Union Parishad member Abdur Rahim as he said, REOPA already created lot of enthusiasm among the people especially the destitute women in the neighbourhood as they are getting jobs earning a minimum salary to meet their livelihood expenses.

REOPA's District officer Raju Jobed said, the programme in Narsingdi so far created job opportunities for 2100 destitute women for the next two years while "we are going to recruit 2100 more women to expand the opportunity for others after the present cycle of two years is over".

The local Project Management committee chairman Monowara Begum said that many of the destitute women under the programme were widows or were deserted by their husbands.

Under the programme design, she said, the lone earning member of a family were selected by lottery after inviting all the destitute women in the locality through mass campaign by Union Parishad to work in the project.

"It has already became a well taken programme in all the six districts in nine months of time and there is already a demand from the stake holders to extend the programme from four years," said REOPA's Project Director Akmal Hossain.

He said, the government and EC had signed the agreement for four years keeping provisions for extending the programme.