The New Nation - Internet Edition

Rafiqul Islam Azad

Nazma Begum, a mother of two in her 30s living at Jorakhali village, Hatiya Upazila, Noakhali, was passing her days in miseries even a year ago when she had nothing to do for a living following the death of her husband. She could not send her son to school. Nazma's husband Saiful Islam died in a road accident four years back.

Nazma got the opportunity to work in a project run by Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) last year. With the work her days began to change for better. Now, her only son Meraj, 8, goes to school and read in class two.

Talking to a group of newsmen when they visited Sagoria Bazar in the upazila she described how Market Infrastructure Development Project in Charland Regions (MIDPCR) created the opportunity for her to live on her own.

The LGED has taken the project financed by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to generate employment opportunities for the rural ultra poor and develop rural infrastructures.

Jannat Begum, Dilara Begum, Sharifa Khatun, Nurjahan Begum, Halima Begum, Hasna and Shamsunnahar who are in their 20s to 40s are either widows or divorcees, or landless, and were included in the project also echoed the same voice. They narrated to the newsmen how the project has generated employment opportunities for them paving the way for gradual self reliance.

Under the project, the ultra poor women work in small groups known as Labour Contact in Society (LCS) numbering 20 to 30 in each for infrastructure development.

Each LCS member gets Tk 100 for a day and each group is entitled to draw profit money on completion of their scheduled work.

Nazma Begum, president of Group-1 at Sagoria Bazar in Hatiya Island, said her group got an allocation of Tk 19,48,000 to build roads, toilets, drains, sinking deep-tube well and installation of dustbins.

Asked about their plan with the profit money, smiling Nazma said they have a plan to build a separate market for female there.

A MIDPCR project official hinted that on an average each LCS member would get Tk 10,000 to Tk 15,000.

Kamran, 55, a shopkeeper at the market, said the infrastructure changed the shape of the market and local people are happy as they can market their products.

Abdus Salam, a buyer, said the new market infrastructure has created the opportunity for marketing goods through better rural connectivity.

Similar market infrastructure was built at Sullokia Khasherhat Bazar under Noakhali sadar upazila.

Abduzzahaer, Chairman of Eojbalia Union Parishad and also the president of Market Management Committee (MMC) said the market which was neglected in the past, has been buzzing with people these days.

Abdur Rahim, a Field Monitoring Officer (FMO) based in Noakhali, Luxmipur districts said he monitors the implementation of projects as per work order.

Under the project, the LGED builds market infrastructure, the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) provides training on agricultural products, International Development Enterprise (IDE), an NGO, works for value adding of production and direct selling to wholesalers and creates backward and forward linkages for the producers while Prisom Bangladesh, another NGO forms group of poor women and runs micro-credit programme.

Md. Abdul Wadud, Executive Engineer of LGED, Noakhali said each market has an 11-member management committee known as MMC with the local UP Chairman as its president.

Md Hedayetul Islam, Project Director for DAE Component, said under the project the DAE provides trainings to the farmers and poor women on cultivation of different vegetables and seeds and rearing goats.

Hatiya Upazila Nirbahi Officer Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid said all sorts of infrastructures bring some benefits to the people of the area concerned.

MIDPCR Project Director Md Khalilur Rahman said the main goal of the project is to help reducing poverty from project areas by involving distressed women in the areas in building market infrastructures and connecting roads towards bazar.

The project, he said, would benefit about 70,000 charland people, particularly small traders, primary producers and extremely poor women.

LGED Chief Engineer Md Wahidur Rahman said the project has been taken to build up market infrastructure particularly in charland areas in the country.

He said the country needed more such projects so that most deserving people could come under the network.

The 294 crore Taka project covering 20 upazilas in 5 districts namely Noakhali, Laxmipur, Bhola, Barisal and Patuakhali, would be completed by June, 2013.