| 4. In which ways is the initiative creative and innovative?
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Survey: We conducted Survey to assess the number and need of the beggars. Out of three hundred thousand populations it was most important to find out the beggars. We developed a format which had 11 questions like name and address of the beggar, monthly income through begging, what alternatives to begging they can do and how much money to rehabilitate and so on. RDRS Bangladesh, Ansar VDP. Village police, upazila team conducted survey and finalized 979 beggars.
Exchange Views: After completion of survey, we exchanged views with respected two members of parliament, elected people, officer’s staffs, business man, and other people. We also discussed the initiative in various meetings, seminars, conferences and motivate the people to come forward.
Create people’s awareness: We have created awareness among the people. People are actively participating in the implementation process of the initiative. To aware the people drama, role play, songs, performances are staged before huge audiences.
Formation of the committee and assign responsibility: Three committees are formed to implement the initiatives. Action plan is formulated in which activities; role, timeline etc. are articulated in the Action Plan.
Training and motivation: We arranged training on cow, got, hen, and duck rearing for the beggars. Besides these, training session are also conducted on cultivation of vegetables in the home ground and barren land and other income generating activities including small trading. The expert trainers motivate them to work instead of begging.
Motivation by Religious Leaders: There are five hundred mosques and 145 temples. A motivating letter had been issued to read out and motivate the religious people to involve in the initiative. Accordingly religious leaders motivated the people which was very much effective.
Announcement of beggar free upazila: Formally we invited all the beggars in a meeting and announce beggar free upazila. Speakers in the grand meeting underscored the need for mainstreaming the street beggars. They also motivated the beggars to give up derogatory profession like begging. Accordingly beggars vowed to give up begging and start working.
Fund collection and management: To meet instant demand for food and inputs for income generating activities, small trading fund is necessary. That is why one bank account was opened and collected fund locally.
Distribution of materials: After collection of fund we purchased materials (duck, hens, goats, rice, betel leaf, fried rice, fried fish and instrument for making domestic cakes) for their small trading and income generating activities.
Vaccination program: We also arranged vaccination programs for goats to save from viral diseases. Upazila live stock office gave medicine and technical support in this respect.
PDCA cycle: Our monitoring team is monitoring and giving us monitoring report and we are taking necessary measures where we see the problem. In this case, we are following plan, do, check and action i.e. PDCA cycle.
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| 5. Who implemented the initiative and what is the size of the population affected by this initiative?
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Two Upazila Nirbahi Officers design the initiative. Before implementation the upazila administration exchanged views with two respected Member of Parliament, Chairman, Vice Chairmen of Upazila Parishad, Chairmen and Members of union parishad, Officers, staffs, teachers, businessmen, civil society and people all walks of life. They gave unanimous support to rehabilitate beggars. Upazila administration along with other stakeholders implements the initiative. More specifically, upazila parishad chairman, union parishad chairmen, member, social service office, EBEK office, Bangladesh rural development office, teachers, businessmen and citizens are involved in the implementation process. Finally the street beggars were also motivated in working instead of begging. Moreover, Deputy Commissioner, Nilphamari, Divisional Commissioner, Rangpur Division, gave financial support and encouraged to implement for public interest. Respected Members of Parliament Mr. Md. Shawkot Chowdhury and Professor Golam Mustafa donated and inspired upazila administration to implement the project. Directorate of Social Service has distributed allowances cards among the 950 beggars. Directorate of Disaster Management has recruited them as their labor of EGPP. Ekti bari ekti khamar have made them members to alleviate poverty in the long run. Directorate of Women Affairs has included the left out beggars in the Vulnerable Group Development (VGD). Officers and staffs of the departments were working hard to implement the initiative. UNO and his team coordinate among the departments and other stakeholders. The role of citizen and non government organizations are also praiseworthy. Because NGOs are monitoring the activities and submitting the report which helps to remove the errors, laps and gaps. The citizen also motivates the beggars to work and not to beg. For example, now they offer work to the ultra poor not money. After working they are giving wage which is changing the mindset of the beggars.
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| 6. How was the strategy implemented and what resources were mobilized?
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Two types of resources are used to implement the initiative. One, locally collected fund and two, government social safety net programs. For meeting the immediate need of the beggars, we collected fund from local people which we spent for purchasing materials. We requested solvent people to deposit money in the bank account, supplied donation box in 9 union parishad office, banks and other important office. Donation of the generous rich people, elected representatives particularly the two members of parliament, chairman, upazila and union parishad, teachers and other service holders even common people are main source. Jakat, fitra of muslim community and other grants are always welcomed. The listed beggars have been included in the government social safety net program. All are included in the vulnerable group feeding (VGF), Some of them are included in the employment generation program for ultra poor (EGPP) of the Directorate of Disaster Management , some of them are included in the vulnerable group development (VGD) of the Directorate of Women Affairs and others are included in other social safety net programs, like aged, widow and disable allowances of the Directorate of Social Service which would also play major role to mitigate the sufferings of the beggars. Ekti bari ekti khamar has made them member for alleviating poverty in the long run. After being member EBEK rehabilitated beggars have got interest free loan to start small business and other income generating activities. Because the member of EBEK deposit savings and government also gives incentive bonus and revolving fund to give loan and
Fund Management
For proper management of fund, one bank account has been opened in Sonali Bank Ltd. The account is being operated by joint signature of UNO and Upazila Rural Poverty Reduction Officer. Registers are also maintained in our office for receipts and disbursements. Besides, a bikash ( mobile money transfer) account has been opened in order to receive donation from remote area who are willing to contribute. We have kept nine donation boxes in nine unions in which two locks. One is under control of UNO and another is under control of union council chairman. The boxes are opened in fortnight basis. The amount is written in registers and again deposits in bank account then disburse in the same union.
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| 7. Who were the stakeholders involved in the design of the initiative and in its implementation?
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People’s awareness is one of the most important output of our initiative. They give all sort of support i.e. financial, physical, mental which contributed a lot attain success of the initiative. For example, people interrogate if any beggar is seen to beg and make phone call to the administration.
Another important contributing output is government social safety net programs including employment generation program for ultra poor of disaster management directorate, aged, widow and disable allowances of social service directorate, vulnerable group’s development of children and women affairs directorate are remarkable.
Elected people i.e two members of parliament, Chairmen, members of union parishad, Chairmen and vice chairmen of upazila parishad, gave the support to the humanitarian initiative and passed the resolution impartially sacrificing their own voters. Moreover, other professionals including teachers, doctors, businessmen, farmers civil society and people all walk of lives also support and cooperate to achieve the target.
Staffs of upazila administration work hard to indentify the genuine beggars, assess their need, alternative employment/income generating activities and purchase the materials from market and distribute among the beggars are really difficult but they sincerely did the job successfully. After distribution, monitoring and evaluation is important to make it sustainable. Regular visit, sudden visit to the beggars home create a stress to work with the supplied materials. The beggars start to change their mindset to work.
Monitoring and evaluation is ineluctable to sustain the project. Ward committee is playing vital role to monitor to the program. Particularly the role of village police is really praiseworthy. They submit the weekly report after collecting the information by visiting door to door. Non government organizations are also collecting the activities and helping in collecting fund and monitoring the activities.
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| 8. What were the most successful outputs and why was the initiative effective?
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There are six monitoring unit i.e 1) Village Police, 2) NGOs, 3) Field Assistant, Ekti bari Ekti Khamar, 4) Ward Committee, 5) Union Committee, 6) Upazilla Committee
Village Police: There are 81 wards in this upazilla and every ward has a village police. The village police is monitoring the activities of the beggars in the concerned ward on the daily basis. But they submit the monitoring report to UNO weekly. UNO evaluates the report and takes corrective measures. For example, if any goat is sick then UNO request live Stock Officer to send some to take care.
NGOs: There are more than 18 NGOs are working in this upazilla. We have monthly coordination meeting with the NGO people. On that day they submit monitoring report and we discuss the conditions, activities of the beggars and take decision.
Field Assistant Ekti bari Ekti Khamar: There are nine union in this upazilla and nine field assistants. Since beggars are the members of ekti bari ekti khamar, they have taken loan from the Ekti bari Ekti khamar samity, that is why, field assistant monitor the functions of the beggars, materials, their business and overall performance. UNO is also controlling officer of the field assistants. So they monitor sincerely.
Ward Beggars Rehabilitation Committee: Member of union council, teacher of government primary school, religious leader, Ansar VDP representatives are the member of ward committee. They observe the situations of the beggars and if any anomaly takes place, they bring it to our notice.
Union Beggars Rehabilitation Committee: Chairman union council, male and female members of union council, Union land assistant officer, deputy assistant agricultural officer, freedom fighter, entrepreneurs of union information and service centre are members of union beggar’s rehabilitation committee. They often visit their conditions. When any relief or allocation comes union committee gives priority to the beggars.
Upazilla Beggars Rehabilitation Committee: Members of upazilla rehabilitation committee visit the beggars home and activities surprisingly. They also evaluate the monitoring report submitted by other committee and take necessary steps.
Moreover, teachers of all educational institutes, officers and staffs of government and non government offices, businessmen, farmers and citizen are requested to inform any committee member particularly focal point of upazilla committee that is UNO if any problem arises anywhere in the upazilla.
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| 9. What were the main obstacles encountered and how were they overcome?
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Initially we supplied goats, duck, hens and other materials equivalents taka 1500 to 2000 but beggars claim much more capital, some of them demand cow instead of goats, ducks and hens. Due to our fund constraints we motivate them and try to satisfy with small capital and whatever they have got. Seeing rehabilitation opportunity non-beggars but poor claim to be beggars and seek rehabilitation facilities. Some beggars who were living Dhaka city or other city, now they are coming to get rehabilitation facilities. Since our locally collected fund is limited, we cannot fulfill unlimited demands. Some poor people frequently come to UNO office and want to be included in the social safety net programs. Some of them demand VGD cards, some demand old age allowance cards, widow allowance cards, disable allowance cards and so on. But the allocation of social safety net programs are limited, we cannot include them as the beneficiary. In that case, we prioritize on the basis of their needs and socio-economic conditions. The rehabilitated beggars think that UNO is their friend that is why they come to UNO and want to tell all of their problems. But it is very difficult to manage time to give patient hearing and address their problems. Another big challenge is a few goats, hens and ducks have been died and sometimes become sick. It is difficult to make up their loss. Fund arrangement is another challenge because this region is comparatively backward and less developed. The rich class are living in the city area, most of the people are middle class, lower middle class and poor-ultra poor. It was difficult to arrange fund for meeting the rehabilitation cost.
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