Engagement of rural women entrepreneurs in the growing handloom and cottage industry has been enhancing rural economy by cutting poverty through increasing production of quality products. The opinion came at the inaugural ceremony of a three-day ‘Textile and Cottage Industries Fair-2017’ held on the ‘Unmukto Mancha’ premises in Nilphamari district town on Monday afternoon.
Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BWCCI) has been organized the fair under the Rural Women Entrepreneurs Skill Development Training Programme with assistance of the Department of Women Affairs under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs.
Rural women entrepreneurs have set up 20 stalls displaying handicraft and handloom garment products produced in their cottage industries, handloom garment factories and small-scale enterprises at the fair. The main objective of arranging the fair is to exhibit and create opportunity for selling of the products being produced by the rural women entrepreneurs and creating their linkage with traders and market operators.
Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) of Nilphamari AJM Ershad Ahsan Habib inaugurated the fair at a colourful ceremony as the chief guest with Nilphamari Pourasabha Mayor Dewan Kamal Ahmed in the chair.
Programme officer of BWCCI Sumanta Kumar Mohanato, District Women Affairs Officer Nurun Nahar Shahajadi, representative of Nilphamari Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry Ummey Kulsum Munni and women entrepreneur Shakila Akhter, addressed.
The speakers said the rural women entrepreneurs have been playing a vital role in creating job opportunities for the local unemployed female workforce to improve livelihoods and accelerate national development.
The chief guest said the fair would help exploring the brighter prospect of rural women entrepreneurship and called upon the rural female entrepreneurs for availing assistance being provided by the government departments, banks and other financial institutions.
Dewan Kamal Ahmed highly appreciated BWCCI for arranging the fair to introduce the locally produced handloom garments, handcrafts and other products for expanding trade, business and commerce to flourishentrepreneurship of rural women.
Proper coordination for building middle income nation stressed: Proper coordination among the local government, government and non-governmental organisations is crucial for building a middle income nation by 2021 through successful implementation of development activities. The opinion came at a views-sharing meeting organised by Rangpur City Corporation (RpCC) on Monday at its conference room.
The meeting focused on properly coordinating development activities being conducted by different NGOs for backward communities in the city.
City Councilors and officials of different NGOs working in the city took part in the event to assess the NGO activities for further strengthening those to attain the sustainable development goals.
Mayor of Rangpur Sarfuddin Ahmed Jhantu attended the meeting as the chief guest, with Chief Executive Officer of RpCC Akhter Hossain Azad in the chair, District representative of BRAC Abu Sayeed, AKM Feroz Alam of Deep Eye Care Foundation, Coordinator of the CLEAR Project of ESDO Mahbubul Haque, Manager of Merry Stopes Jahangir Alam, Zonal Manager of TMSS Sanaul Haque addressed it.
City Councilors Jahurul Haque Azabbar, Mahbubar Rahman Manju, Jahangir Alam Tota, Hasna Banu and Jafrin Islam Ripa and Superintending Engineer of RpCC Emdad Hossain also spoke.
The speakers laid importance on ensuring transparency and accountability in NGO activities and selecting particular working area by each of those to avoid overlapping problem and ensure real development of the backward people.
The chief guest stressed on expanding RpCC-NGO collaboration to ensure services to the backward people, enhancing women participation in decision making by creating income generation scopes for empowering them to build a middle income nation.
“The NGOs should come forward to work with local government institutions and law enforcement agencies to root out militancy for smooth development of socially backward and slum dwellers in the city,” he said.
City Councilor Jahurul Haque Azabbar stressed on ensuring proper
coordination of the NGOs with RpCC and following the rules and regulations in conducting activities by the NGOs to further speed up development process in
the city.
Akhter Hossain Azad called upon the NGO authorities for innovation of effective planning and methods to ensure quality service deliveries to the socially backward people for attaining their sustainable development.
