Civil societies’ active participation essential for sustainable development: Speakers
BDCSO demanded recognition of the contribution of CSOs in the development of the country
Speakers at a discussion on Saturday said the active participation of civil society organisations in development initiatives is critical to making Bangladesh's development more effective and sustainable.
They shared the view at the annual meeting of the Bangladesh NGO-CSO Coordination Process (BDCSO Process), said a press release.
The three-day annual meeting of the network of around 600 local and national NGOs-CSOs kicked off Saturday.
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Participants in the session titled "Local civil society: why and how building a third sector" also demanded legal acknowledgement of NGOs and CSOs' contributions to development across the country.
The session was chaired by a prominent economist and chairman of the PKSF Kazi Khaliquzzaman Ahmad.
Kazi Khaliquzzaman Ahmed said local administration needs to involve local government as well as local civil society to make that development sustainable.
"Local NGOs-CSOs are working with transparency and accountability, but we have a lot more to do. We need to ensure the dignified participation of all, not just the development of our own organisation," he said.
KM Tariqul Islam, Director General, NGO Affairs Bureau, was the chief guest at the session, which was chaired by Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, Executive Director, COAST Foundation.
Deputy Secretary of the Development Effectiveness Wing of the Ministry of Finance Ak Azad, Sudipta Mukherjee of UNDP and Michelle Mousulman of Christian Aid spoke as special guests.
Abdul Awal of NRDS and Supro, Faizullah Chowdhury of BUP, Naeem Gawhar Wahra of Disaster Forum, Rafiqul Islam Khokon of Rupantar, Sheikh Asaduzzaman of Udayan Bangladesh and Jasmine Sultana Paru of ELLMA also spoke on the occasion.
