Bangladesh makes remarkable achievement in girls education

DHAKA, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh has made remarkable achievement in increasing girls enrollment in primary level since early 1990s with the ratio of girls and boys at schools standing at 1:1 currently, a senior official said.

Secretary of Ministry of Primary and Mass Education M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told Xinhua recently in an exclusive interview that "The Bangladesh government has made tremendous efforts in getting more girls to schools and successfully achieved gender parity."

Now the net enrollment rate at the primary level in the country is 91.1 percent, of which male is 87.8 percent and female is 94.7 percent, while percentage of girls at schools is 50.7 among total 16.3 million students, he said.

Musharraf said, various measures have been taken to increase girls enrollment since the Compulsory Primary Education Program, covering grade 1-5, was implemented all over the country in 1993 after the Compulsory Primary Education Act was passed in 1990.

Under the program, tuition and textbooks are free of cost for all the students. The government also gives stipend to poor schoolchildren including both girls and boys. However, for grade 6-10 only girls are given stipend as the dropout rate of girls is much higher after grade 5.

There are also provisions for certain schools to attain gender parity.

According to the Primary and Mass Education Ministry, the total number of the primary-level educational institutions in the country is about 81,000, among which 46.2 percent are government schools, 24.7 percent are Registered Non-Government Primary School(RNGPS) and 19 percent are religion schools.

For private-initiated RNGPS, the government extends 85-95 percent salary support to the teachers there. However, they must attain the gender parity with number of girl students accounting for 50 percent.

Besides, to eliminate gender disparity and ensure wide participation of women in development activities, 60 percent of new teachers post have been reserved for female teachers. As a result, the percentage of female teachers in the government primary schools has already reached 50.2 percent.

Massive social mobilization programs, including some initiated by teachers' associations, have been undertaken to encourage guardians to send the girl child to schools.

Meanwhile, when enrolling the student, the names of both the mother and the father are registered. For payment of stipend money to the students, the bank account has to be opened in the mother's name.

"These steps have contributed to the increase of the girl enrollment and the attainment of gender parity," Musharraf said.

"Girls' education has very positive impacts. For example, an increase in the education of girls decreases the rate of early marriage," he said.

BANGLADESH: Battling the effects of climate change

Bangladesh urgently needs support in developing a climate-resilient agriculture if its people are to survive and prosper in the long term, according to some experts.

Climate change is affecting the country in many ways. For instance, rising sea levels are causing some agricultural land in coastal areas to become more saline, reducing both the quality and quantity of the produce available.

In southern districts where land is only centimetres higher than the brackish estuarine water, large swathes of agricultural land are becoming arid: Crop yields are shrinking as a result of increased salinity due to rising water levels in the Bay of Bengal.

Agronomists and agricultural experts now worry that creeping salinity will engulf more and more land in the low-lying nation.

"The impact of climate change on agriculture is undeniable and will most certainly worsen if governments and donors fail to take appropriate steps right now," Ghulam Mohammad Panaullah, former research director of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), warned.

In coastal areas, cocoa nut and betel nut trees do not yield half of what they did two decades ago, while banana groves are dying out in their hundreds, Panaullah told IRIN.

At the same time, vegetables sold in the urban markets of Dhaka, Khulna and Rajshai are deemed tasteless and fetch low prices compared to produce from salt-free regions.

Climate-resilient agriculture

In a country where almost 80 percent of the population lives in rural areas, this is bad news.

According to the World Bank, Bangladesh's agriculture sector accounts for about 22 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), with another 33 percent of GDP is derived from the rural non-farm economy, which is also linked to agriculture. Around 54 percent of the rural population is employed in agriculture.

Bangladesh needs support for climate-resilient agriculture, ActionAid said in a report at the UN climate change summit in Poznan, Poland, which ended on 12 December.

Citing an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report which said South Asia might experience a 30 percent drop in agricultural production by 2050, ActionAid said the slide was already evident.

Food price volatility, which could be compounded by increasing climate change variability, is likely to be a serious problem for the foreseeable future, according to ActionAid.

The report said support for sustainable climate-resilient agriculture was key to enabling farmers to increase food security and adapt.

Photo: Shamsuddin Ahmed/IRIN
The Teesta river continues to erode its southern bank in the northwestern region of Bangladesh. Bangladesh tops the Global Climate Risk Index 2009
New techniques

Meanwhile, in an effort to address this, farmers have taken to raising their vegetable beds, maintaining the soil's moisture by covering the seed beds (and the manure around plants) with straw and leaves to prevent excessive evaporation and erosion, and increasing the amount of organic material in the soil.

Others are modifying their cropping patterns altogether, the report said.

"Bangladesh is one of the worst affected among countries that are facing the early impacts of climate change," said A.K.M. Rezaul Kabir, secretary in the Ministry of Environment and Forestry.

In 2005 the government prepared a National Action Plan on Adaptation (NAPA) identifying 15 projects that needed to be undertaken, but "unfortunately three years have already passed and we have only just started implementing the first project," the official said.

Climate risk index

Bangladesh tops the Global Climate Risk Index 2009, followed by North Korea and Nicaragua.

Launched at the UN climate change conference in Poznan on 4 December, the index lists 170 countries and was drawn up by international NGO Germanwatch.

Natural calamities in Bangladesh led to the deaths of 4,729 people last year, and the average loss of property in Bangladesh due to natural disasters was over US$4 billion per year, the NGO said.

These changes are already having major impacts on the economy and on the lives and livelihoods of millions of poor people, according to a World Bank report.

It said predicted rainfall increase, particularly during the summer monsoon, could increase flooding in more vulnerable areas in Bangladesh.

In the longer term, global warming could lead to the disappearance of many glaciers that feed many rivers in South Asia, the report said.

"If that happens, green Bangladesh would turn into a grey desert and most people would die of starvation," predicted Mosharraf Hossain, a former parliamentarian from the coastal district of Laxmipur.

Bangladesh protests Indian ship crossing into its waters

Bangladesh Friday asked India to postpone a deep sea survey in its waters until a wartime maritime boundary between the neighbouring countries is settled by mutual agreement."Bangladesh is lodging a formal protest with the India government about activities of a survey ship in its (Bangladesh) waters," a foreign ministry spokesman said.

He said the Indian ship was seen surveying in the deep sea block 14 at the maritime area claimed by Bangladesh on terms of Territorial Water and Maritime Zones Act, 1974.

The ministry said the navy vessel that located the India ship during patrol asked them to leave Bangladeshi waters. The ship initially moved towards the Indian waters but came back to its earlier location Dec 25.

When Bangladesh navy asked for the second time to leave its maritime waters, the ship claimed that it was in the Indian waters.

Meanwhile, a navy officer requesting anonymity said that despite protest, the three survey ships, one belonging to India and two from Bahamas, continued their exploratory activities till Friday evening.

The officer said two more Bangladeshi naval ships were sent to the area to back up their patrol ship.

Bangladesh Nov remittances up 24 pct on year

Money sent home by Bangladeshis working overseas in November rose 24 percent to $767.35 million from a year earlier, the central bank said on Thursday.

In July-November, the first five months of the 2008/09 financial year, remittances from more than 5 million expatriate Bangladeshis totalled $3.75 billion, around 34 percent higher than the same period of 2007/08.

The central bank expects remittances to touch an annual $10 billion in the current financial year.

Analysts have expected the inflow of remittances to slowdown as the global credit crisis and recession in the developed world put jobs at risk.

However, the central bank said the remittances would be affected only if instability in financial markets persists for long.

The expat incomes, a key source of foreign exchange for the impoverished south Asian country, hit a record $7.91 billion in the 2007/08 financial year that ended in June, nearly a third higher than the previous fiscal year.

The bulk of remittances for the majority-Muslim Bangladesh come from Middle-Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, followed by the United States and United Kingdom.

Strong remittances also helped offset the impact of the trade shortfall and kept the overall balance of payments in surplus.

Remittances are Bangladesh's second-biggest source of foreign income after ready-made garments, which earned $10.7 billion in the 2007/08 fiscal year.

Bangladesh To Export 12 Ships To Europe By 2011

Western Marine Shipyard Ltd. (WMSL), a local shipbuilding company, will export 12 ships, weighing 5,200 tonnes each, by 2011 to Germany, Holland and Denmark, the Bangladesh's news agency BSS reported.

Commerce and Education Adviser Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman inaugurated building of the 12 ice class ocean-going multipurpose vessels at the WMSL yard at Shikalbaha on the south bank of the river Karnaphuli in the district.

Quoting Dr Hossain, BSS reported that the export of such a big number of ships as a milestone for the country's shipbuilding sector and said it would definitely help Bangladesh find a secure place in global ship manufacturing market.

"The sector has enormous potentials and it would contribute to making Bangladesh a middle-income country soon.

"The sector has huge potential of contributing to the economy after garment sector and shipbuilding companies should not compromise with the quality in keeping the reputation in global export market," he said after the "keel-laying ceremony that symbolizes with hitting the hammer on iron-plate on the proposed structure of a ship to start the work.

Also present were German Ambassador to Bangladesh Frank Meyke, Denmark Ambassador Bea M Ten Tusscher and Shipping Secretary ATM Mokter Hossain, Managing Director of AB Bank Ltd Kyser A Chowdhury and Managing Director of WMSL Sakhawat Hossain.

He said separate rules and regulations are needed for the shipbuilding sector.

The adviser said pledges of giving special attention by two major electoral alliances in their polls manifestos for the promotion of the sector is really encouraging.

Dr Hossain Zillur asked the commercial banks to come forward in providing soft-term loans to the entrepreneurs in the sector.

Meanwhile Danish Ambassador Bea M Ten Tusscler said Bangladesh is not only a ship breaking country but also has emerged as a strong ship manufacturing and exporting state through concerted efforts.

She urged the concerned authorities to increase the facilities for flourishing the sector and to work with dedication to uphold the image of Bangladesh in the international arena.

WMSL has already built 54 various types of vessels. Of them, 49 were supplied in the local market and the remaining are for international market.

Trade body leaders from Dhaka and Chittagong, and entrepreneurs and bankers also attended the colourful inaugural function.

The adviser went round the WMSL establishment over 20 acres of land enriched with state-of-the-art technology.

Huge new population of Irrawaddy dolphins discovered in Bangladesh

Several species of dolphin and one porpoise species have been awarded greater protection through the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS) at its 9th meeting of Parties in Rome.

The Black Sea bottlenose dolphin, the Irrawaddy dolphin and the Atlantic humpback dolphin have all been moved to CMS Appendix I, the highest level of protection awarded by the Convention for species that are endangered and require countries to take urgent action to protect them from all threats they face across their range.

2 dolphins and 1 porpoise moved to appendix 2
The Mediterranean population of Risso's dolphin and West African population of Clymene dolphin along with the North West African population of harbour porpoise have been listed on Appendix II of the Convention, which means that countries commit to cooperating to increase the conservation of the listed species.

Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science for WDCS said, "This first step is a great success for the dolphin and porpoise species. We have worked very long and hard to make sure these endangered populations receive proper protection from all the threats they face including all sources of marine pollution, bycatch, ship strikes and climate change."

"Scientists working with WDCS through the Cetacean Liaison Group developed the formal proposals that countries have considered at this meeting. The process takes a long time, and WDCS is gratified to have a positive outcome for the animals" he said, "but now we need to hear that they will benefit from these listings by hearing commitment from the countries involved to develop agreements that will mean tangible protection for the animals from all the threats the face."

Long term conservation
When species are listed on the appendices CMS requires countries where these animals live (called Range States) to commit to long term conservation measures to protect them. This is most commonly done by developing multi-country agreements.

While WDCS is celebrating the important step of listing the animals, we are concerned that countries will not take the next step in developing the agreement to put that protection into action for the Irrawaddy dolphin.

The Black Sea bottlenose dolphin and the Mediterranean population of Risso's dolphin are already covered by the CMS agreement called ACCOBAMS, and WDCS will work closely with that agreement to help them redouble their efforts to protect these animals. Similarly, the Atlantic humpback dolphin and West African population of Clymene dolphin along with the North West African population of harbour porpoise are covered by the newest CMS agreement for Western African Aquatic Mammals, and WDCS will also work hard to ensure that these species benefit from protection as well.

Huge new population of Irrawaddy dolphins discovered in Bangladesh
Irrawaddy dolphins do not have any protection agreement across any part of their range in the Indian Ocean or in South East Asia. Current population figures for the Irrawaddy dolphin are unknown, although experts believe that some of the critically endangered sub-populations might number less than 100 individuals, and in the Philippines there may be just 45 dolphins left. Accurate estimates for the numbers of marine species of the Irrawaddy dolphin are also lacking although recently a previously un-studied population in Bangladesh was discovered to have as many as 5,800 individuals.

WDCS already supports conservation and education projects with many of the most highly threatened populations of Irrawaddy dolphins in the world. Currently, we are funding projects in India and Indonesia.

"All this work will amount to nothing if countries don't take the next important step and commit to reducing the threats that these animals face and by protecting the habitat they need to survive. We hope that they will not turn from this responsibly this week, and that they will agree to start the negotiations of these important agreements in South East Asia and the Indian Ocean. The Irrawaddy dolphin needs their commitment." said Mark Simmonds.