Mokbul Morshed Ahmad

Distant voices: the views of the field workers of NGOs in Bangladesh on microcredit

Recently, microcredit has become a fashionable cure-all for most non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Bangladesh. The provision of services to the poor is by definition always difficult, and even NGOs have problems. NGOs in Bangladesh define the poor in different ways when creating their target groups. The policies of nearly all NGOs in Bangladesh are formulated by their senior managers, and field workers are rarely consulted. This paper will explore the opinions on microcredit of selected field workers of four types of NGOs in Bangladesh – on how the problem of microcredit might be solved. Problems of microcredit programmes, they say, include non-accessibility to the poorest, low return, misuse and overemphasis on repayment. Field workers discuss what level of importance should be given to microcredit as against services like education, health or awareness creation. Most conclude that NGOs are overemphasizing microcredit, which leaves little time and few resources for other problems of the poor, so bringing the whole ‘development’ effort of the NGOs into question. Most field workers think that many microenterprises are not sustainable and that in many cases clients will remain dependent on the NGOs for credit.

Who cares? The personal and professional problems of NGO fieldworkers in Bangladesh

This article highlights the personal and professional problems of NGO fieldworkers in Bangladesh. The paper draws on field research with the front-line workers of four NGOs, their clients, immediate superiors, and senior management. Fieldworkers face personal problems such as job insecurity, financial hardships, difficulties with accommodation, and family dislocation. These problems differ according to gender, marital status, and age. Professional problems include training, promotion, and transfer. In addition, fieldworkers face problems in their external relationships, including suspicion, resistance or lack of cooperation from religious leaders and local e´lites, time and resource constraints, competition for clients, and eagerness of the intended beneficiaries simply to get access to financial or material benefits. It will be argued that the strengths of the fieldworkers of Southern NGOs have been largely unexplored and undervalued.

Analysing the lacunae in planning and implementation: spatial development of Dhaka city and its impacts upon the built environment

This article explores the causes of rapid increase in land and housing development projects and their effects on the restricted areas of Greater Dhaka, Bangladesh, using a global positioning system (GPS) survey and socio-economic data. Rapidly increasing housing projects are contravening the urban containment policy stipulated in the Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan (DMDP). These findings show that most of the projects do not have any kind of plan approval and many projects have encroached on restricted areas, for example, flood flow zones (FFZs), high-value agricultural land and retention ponds, through massive land filling, which has resulted in rapid changes of land use, with wide range of impacts on environment and habitat quality. Furthermore, the article analyses the inherent lack of integrated urban planning, the lacunae within agencies in charge of urban management and the resultant externalities in the built environment.

Changing fortunes in anti‐poverty programmes in Bangladesh

The level of poverty in Bangladesh has remained high by any standard since independence. Strategies to reduce poverty in Bangladesh have sought (i) to increase production and income and (ii) to redirect the flow of income and consumption. In most strategies, income generation predominates with redistribution playing a minor or a complementary role. Three salient characteristics of government programmes to reduce poverty in rural Bangladesh are their lack of commitment to their supposed goals, their inefficacy in reaching the poor, and their lack of co-ordination with non-governmental organizations. These weaknesses help account for the persistence of poverty in rural Bangladesh over the last three decades. The emphasis has now shifted to the work of non-governmental organizations, but this article argues that their programmes suffer from some of the same problems.

Landholding size and farmers’ access to credit and its utilisation in Pakistan

ABSTRACT This article reports on a study that aimed to investigate the differences in access to, and utilisation of, agricultural credit among subsistence farmers in Pakistan. Primary data were collected from 87 randomly selected subsistence farmers. Results show that subsistence farmers with more land had greater access and utilisation, and that education, experience, type of farmer, and landholding size were significant factors influencing access to credit. As subsistence farmers with the least land were the most disadvantaged, there is a need for revamping the credit policy to protect their interests. Moreover, simplifying the existing complex procedures involved in securing agricultural credit is highly recommended.

Measuring Support Provisions for People Living With Disabilities in South Asia: An Accessibility Index

ABSTRACT The terms “empowerment,” “rights,” and “inclusiveness” are now commonly used in public policy, but little emphasis is placed on “accessibility” issues in the integration of disabled people. This article proposes a composite index to measure economic support provisions, such as employment, vocational training, microfinance, and safety nets. The index was tested in a case study (N= 245) of two districts in Pakistan. Results support a “cost/benefit”-based philosophy, rather than the “means–ends” goal, where the disabled poor are viewed as unproductive and risky payers, instead of giving them an opportunity to exercise their potential. Change for the disadvantaged poor can be brought about with the mandatory use of this index in local annual audits. Future research might examine the impact of the index and standardize it for global use.

Impacts of environmental laws on land development and developers in Dhaka City, Bangladesh

The fast paced land and housing development projects in Dhaka City since 1980s had generated irregularities in developers’ real estate projects and policy deviations in the Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan (DMDP). This paper explores the causes of the irregularities and reasons that trapped many buyers in the developers’ unauthorised housing projects and violation of some regulations. The study argues that the untimely promulgation of laws, namely: The Natural Water Body, Open Space, Park/Play Ground Preservation Rule 2000, Private Housing Project Land Development Rules 2004 (PHPLD Rules 2004), and Real Estate Development and Management Act 2010 (REDM Act 2010) could be largely responsible for the present crisis. This paper suggests that modification of the DMDP policies and relevant laws should be urgently undertaken in order to bring about solidity and smooth functioning of the land and real estate market in Dhaka. The study also suggests that an independent assessment agency could be commissioned to assess the situation and minimise the risks of buyers and the irregularities of developers by disseminating the relevant information to respective agencies and concerned persons.

Sustaining livelihoods in complex emergencies: experiences of Sri Lanka

This article examines the role of context-specific factors that help to perpetuate the vulnerability of conflict-affected people. The discussion revolves around key concepts of household livelihood security, resilience building, income diversification, market access, and armed non-state actors. It is argued that, while conflict-affected households develop adaptive strategies to sustain their livelihoods amid the commonly observed vulnerabilities, the governance arrangements of the parties to the conflict can place stress on local initiatives, confining them to subsistence level and so reinforcing their vulnerability. Deeper analysis of the sources of vulnerability and implications of policy processes could help to inform intervention strategies.

Why does Community-Based Rehabilitation fail physically disabled women in northern Thailand?

Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) has been adopted in many countries to help disabled people. This article analyses the interplay between CBR and the self-alienation of physically disabled women from their communities. In-depth interviews with 40 women with physical disabilities in northern Thailand found that CBR was barely capable of enabling women with physical disabilities to realise their sense of self within their community, because in itself CBR was unable to change the communitys false impression of disability. Despite participating in CBR programmes, the self-alienation of physically disabled women from their community remained; the authors argue that this was due to the heavy reliance of CBR on medical practice, ignoring gender as a major contributing factor. In addition, CBR field workers obviously failed to grasp the magnitude of social models in disability rehabilitation.

Role of government in flood disaster recovery for SMEs in Pathumthani province, Thailand

Government is major stakeholder in disaster recovery process in any given affected economy. Government policies impact the sectors of economy in all aspects may it be financial, social or managerial. The vulnerabilities from natural hazards such as floods could be minimized through flood preparedness strategies and recovery mechanisms to cope faster from disasters. This study aims to find out the level of government’s role, responsibilities and strategies adopted while 2011 floods in the Pathumthani province in Thailand. The critical evaluation of the recovery mechanism and loss from floods are analyzed to provide resilient SME in the study area. The methodology includes content analysis of the qualitative and quantitative data collected through survey questionnaires, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. The findings included inter-department miscommunication, mismanagement of available resources, and lack of transparency in the government’s action plans, lack of interest to provide sustainability at the ground level and lack of transportation facilities in the flood affected area. The study sheds light on the gaps of the existing flood recovery mechanisms in the Pathumthani province and provides for recommendations to enhance sustainability among SMEs in the industrialized province of Pathumthani.