Bangladesh: Rural Development & Women’s Economic Empowerment
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Women in Bangladesh
The focus of this trip will be the economic empowerment of women through micro lending institutions. Giving women small loans can enable them to escape poverty traps and provide them with self sustaining livelihoods. In addition to their economic benefits these loans are also a way of encouraging new social norms that reinforce the equality between women and men. Furthermore, the volunteer work associated with this trip will also give light on to the underrepresented communities within Bangladesh and their exposure to microcredit. This will allow the students to be critical of micro-credit’s targeting abilities in indeed helping not only the poorest of the poor but also those that are marginalized in society due to cultural norms.
Our hope for this trip is that students will come away with a new or renewed sense of both the breadth and dearth that exist in the field of rural development. We hope to enforce that students need to look at the issues of poverty and be in touch with the need and aspirations of a community before they begin to think of possible long term solutions. With this trip we hope that students will get firsthand knowledge what successful development projects looks like and how these projects mobilize communities to better themselves through their own potentials.
After returning from the trip, students will take their newly found experience of what social innovations can accomplish, and apply it to both to their own class work and also to their future work in the development field. We also hope that they will create strong bonds to the microfinance and other economic justice programs and remain up to date about the latest and most effective models for poverty reeducation. One way we see students continuing this communication with the world of rural development is through student organizing that brings together the best that AU has to offer, with students from diverse academic backgrounds like, International Development(SIS),Economics(CAS), International Business (Kogod) and Communication (SOC) working together to both remain involved with communities around the world and encourage other students to be open-minded active individuals who look for pioneering solutions to critical social justice issues around the world.
Community Engagement and Service Work during the Trip
• Traveling to villages
• Watching bank proceedings and branch meetings take place
• Interacting with borrowers
• Going to the homes / businesses of borrowers to see how they have used their micro-credit loans
• Volunteer initiative with the marginalized minority community:
o Teaching English
o Building Infrastructure
o Engaging in micro-entrepreneurial activities
• Dialogue with students in Dhaka about the microcredit and poverty alleviation.
About the Student Leaders…
Karina Zannat is a sophomore at the School of International Service and Kogod School of Business. She is a native of Bangladesh and previously interned for the Bangladeshi Parliament working under on the election campaign of Shagufta Yasmin (Parliament Deputy Whip). She brings specific understanding of the processes required to communicate with poor rural villagers having campaigned on foot and talked to hundreds of people every day. Karina is active with the Students for Liberty and Nourish International, and AU Free Market Society.
Rakiba Kibria is a senior pursing a double degree in International Development from S.I.S. and Economics from C.A.S. She is a native Bangladesh raised in New York City. Over the summer of 2008 she conducted her undergraduate research on microcredit institutions in Bangladesh with the Grameen Bank. This unique experience led her to analyze the effects of solidarity group lending and the poverty alleviation strategies of microfinance. She is involved with UNAUSA Model UN conferences, has special passion for social entrepreneurship, and worked with welfare organizations across Bangladesh.
Tentative Itinerary
Day One
Arrive in Dhaka City
Briefing at Grameen Bank Headquarters
Three days
Travel to Chittagong
Field Exposure trip to old, new and underrepresented Grameen bank branches
Final Days
Return to Dhaka
Debriefing at Grameen
Observe and engage in Urban development
Dialogue with Dhaka university students
