Bridging the gap to linking
networks
Innovation Plan in Bangladesh (Shanjada Khan Ripa)
6-13 December 2014 Learning Route Nepal

Vision
Securing women’s land
and natural resource
rights

Context
• Bangladesh economy depends mostly on agriculture
•Women have less access to resource and this access is not
secure (no title rights)
• Inheritance rights governed by religious practices
• Muslim: women have a little access, not equal access
• Hindu and christians: women have no rights
• By law, single women and widows do not have access to land
• Violence agains women linked to land (acid throwing, etc.)

Objectives
General: bridging the gaps between men and
women
•Scaling up women’s participation in decision-making
role
•Ensure women’s access to land and natural
resource

Results
Beneficiaries: women and men groups, local leaders and community
leaders
How: through participatory research action and capacity building
1. Social and economic empowerment and dignity
2. Engagement in the decision-making activities in the communities
(e.g. member of the school communities, member of local
governments like Union Parishad member)
3. Better knowledge on women’s land rights; ensure the access to the
public land

Actors
Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD) will provide capacity builing
training, legal support, networking and information dissemination to
1. its local partner organizations at district level (enumerators)
2. communities (leaders and young volunteers)
The local enumerators will provide the communties support on linking them with other
local actors (e.g. local agricultural offices, local government institutions, etc.).
Leaders will act as village court to settle conflict among the community members on family
issues, social issues, etc.
The young volunteers will work in the community to build social awarness on early
marrige, violence against women, etc.

Actions
• Increase the number of enumerators (3 or 4)
•Capacity building training to enumerators (old
and new), community leaders and volunteers (6
trainings)
•Participatory research actions by communities
•Documentation of case studies
•Production of newsletters