Jen Maurer, Sr. Policy Associate for RESULTS, writes about the organization's recent trip to see BRAC's programs in Bangladesh with several US congressional staffers.
In January, RESULTS Educational Fund organized an educational trip to Bangladesh and India for congressional staffers who work on global health and foreign affairs. The purpose of these educational trips is to provide congressional staff with a firsthand experience of the progress and challenges faced by developing countries trying to addressing these issues, as well as the impact of U.S. government support for these programs.
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We had the extreme fortune to visit with BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), the world’s largest — and probably most impressive — NGO. It’s playing a critical role in reducing poverty in Bangladesh: its programs reach 110 million of the 150 million Bangladeshis. We spent a day with BRAC visiting a rural area outside of Dhaka to see their TB and microfinance programs, but first were lucky enough to meet with Mr. Fazle Abed, the founder and chairperson of BRAC and a truly inspiring man who is globally honored and recognized as a leader in fighting poverty). Mr. Abed and BRAC firmly believe that public health and social services should be provided by the government; as a result, BRAC’s goal is not to replace government services, but to support and expand services in partnership with the government. For example, BRAC is spearheading a successful and innovative national TB control effort in conjunction with the government. An interesting note: BRAC first started working on TB because it realized that the prime reason its microfinance clients were defaulting was due to TB illness in their family.
Mr. Abed told us that when they first wanted to expand TB services on a national scale, they requested funding from the World Bank, but were denied, with Bank staff explaining there just wasn’t money for TB. However, once the Global Fund was created, there was finally funding to support expansion of TB programs in Bangladesh. Thanks to the Global Fund and BRAC’s work with the government, Bangladesh has made great strides; for example, TB case detection rates have increased from 49 percent to 78 percent and from 46 percent to 73 percent in BRAC and government programs, respectively, between 2003 and 2009!
Never an NGO to rest on its laurels, BRAC continues to expand and improve its services in Bangladesh (its programs are too numerous to list here!) and now globally: started after the civil war with Pakistan ended in 1971, BRAC is taking its post-conflict development expertise to other countries in need, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, southern Sudan, and Liberia.
Read the full post on the RESULTS blog.
In January, RESULTS Educational Fund organized an educational trip to Bangladesh and India for congressional staffers who work on global health and foreign affairs. The purpose of these educational trips is to provide congressional staff with a firsthand experience of the progress and challenges faced by developing countries trying to addressing these issues, as well as the impact of U.S. government support for these programs.
...
We had the extreme fortune to visit with BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), the world’s largest — and probably most impressive — NGO. It’s playing a critical role in reducing poverty in Bangladesh: its programs reach 110 million of the 150 million Bangladeshis. We spent a day with BRAC visiting a rural area outside of Dhaka to see their TB and microfinance programs, but first were lucky enough to meet with Mr. Fazle Abed, the founder and chairperson of BRAC and a truly inspiring man who is globally honored and recognized as a leader in fighting poverty). Mr. Abed and BRAC firmly believe that public health and social services should be provided by the government; as a result, BRAC’s goal is not to replace government services, but to support and expand services in partnership with the government. For example, BRAC is spearheading a successful and innovative national TB control effort in conjunction with the government. An interesting note: BRAC first started working on TB because it realized that the prime reason its microfinance clients were defaulting was due to TB illness in their family.
Mr. Abed told us that when they first wanted to expand TB services on a national scale, they requested funding from the World Bank, but were denied, with Bank staff explaining there just wasn’t money for TB. However, once the Global Fund was created, there was finally funding to support expansion of TB programs in Bangladesh. Thanks to the Global Fund and BRAC’s work with the government, Bangladesh has made great strides; for example, TB case detection rates have increased from 49 percent to 78 percent and from 46 percent to 73 percent in BRAC and government programs, respectively, between 2003 and 2009!
Never an NGO to rest on its laurels, BRAC continues to expand and improve its services in Bangladesh (its programs are too numerous to list here!) and now globally: started after the civil war with Pakistan ended in 1971, BRAC is taking its post-conflict development expertise to other countries in need, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, southern Sudan, and Liberia.
Read the full post on the RESULTS blog.
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