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Evaluation Report BNKS & SRHR Project Bandarban, Banglasesh December 2013 “Strengthening Reproductive Health Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Bandarban

Transcript of BNKS, Bandarban [Year] Evaluation Report · BNKS, Bandarban [Year] Evaluation Report BNKS & SRHR...

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BNKS, Bandarban [Year]

Evaluation Report BNKS & SRHR Project

Bandarban, Banglasesh December 2013

Strengthening

reproductive

health rights

of ethnic

communities

in Bandarban

“Strengthening Reproductive Health Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Bandarban

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Foreword

Basically this is intended to acknowledge the contributions and cooperation received from all the people involved in it starting from the colleagues of Diakonia Bangladesh and BNKS - to the members of the community groups who have been patient and responsive to our questions and various other needs. We would additionally like to acknowledge our debt to the people of Bandarban in general, and the staff of BNKS in particular, for enlightening us with many facets of life of the disadvantaged Adivasi communities living in the remote hill tracts. While we have been commissioned to provide special inputs in assessing BNKS and its project on SRHR (Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights), our own learning from this process has been of no less significance. Bandarban was full of contrasts and contradictions. Breath-taking beauty of nature and peaceful environment with its rich stock of flora and fauna can easily conceal the dismal reality of life in which the ethnic population groups have to survive amid much deprivation and discrimination. The rich cultural heritage and valiant struggle for survival of these brave people has obscured their squalid existence characterised by economic poverty, discrimination and denial of rights.

We would like to express our gratitude to all those who have been so cooperative with us in making this brief evaluation process successful. With apologies to those whose names could not be mentioned here due constraint of space, let us simply thank all the local staff of Bolipara, Thanchi, Ruma and Bandarban who have very thoughtfully organised these visits for the evaluation team to meet the Tripura, Khumi, Bawm and Marma communities. We must also thank the members of these community groups, who have spent long hours with us answering our questions and explaining their work to us under the project. Needless to say that the key source of information and evidence for our analysis in this report has been this part of the work carried out over the three days as noted in the Annex 1.

We would like to convey our special thanks to the Executive Director, Ms. Hla Shing Nue, for her outstanding leadership in planning and arranging the whole mission with such remarkable speed and efficiency. The Programme Director, Mr. Peshal Chakma also deserves a similar appreciation for his cooperation and oversight. The Project Manager, Mr. Kya Shwe Hla (Shwe ting) of course, deserves our deepest gratitude for helping us from start to the end with all necessary documents, logistics and advice during the entire evaluation process.

Muhammad Taher Sung Thwe Prue (Daisy) Mahbubul Islam

December, 2014

Cover photo: “Pensive Khumi adolescent girl with a child” at Hoytan Khumipara, Bolipara Union, Thanchi, Bandarban. Photo credit: Evaluation Team.

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List of Abbreviations

BNKS Association of Development for Economic and Social Help

ASK Ain O Salish Kendra (Legal Aid Organisation)

BDT Bangladesh Taka

CHT Chittagong Hill Tracts

CSO Civil Society Organisation

CRM Complaint and Response Mechanism

ED Executive Director

FGD Focus Group Discussion

GOB Government of Bangladesh

HAP Humanitarian Accountability Partnership

HR Human Rights or Human Resource

LFA Logical Framework Analysis

LGI Local Government Institutions

MDG Millennium Development Goal

MIS Management Information System

M & E Monitoring and Evaluation

MFI Micro Financial Institution

OVI Objectively Verifiable Indicator

OIP Open Information Policy

PME Planning Monitoring Evaluation

PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper

RBA Rights Based Approach

SRHR Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights

UHC Universal Health Coverage

UP Union Parishad

UNDP United Nations Development Programme

SDG Sustainable Development Goal

SWOT Strength Weakness Opportunity Threats

TBA Traditional Birth Attendant

VDG Village Development Group

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Contents

Foreword .................................................................................................................................... ii

List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................................. iii

Contents ................................................................................................................................... iv

1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Background.................................................................................................................. 1

1.2 The mission of BNKS ................................................................................................... 2

1.3 The SRHR project ........................................................................................................ 3

1.4 Objective of evaluation ................................................................................................. 3

1.4 Methodology ................................................................................................................ 3

2. SRHR project in Bandarban context .................................................................................... 5

2.1 Scope and importance of the project ............................................................................ 5

2.1.1 Accomplishment of results .................................................................................... 5

2.2 Reproductive Health Services ...................................................................................... 6

2.3 Reduction of discrimination and violence .................................................................. 8

2.4 Empowerment of Women ........................................................................................... 11

3. Key Conclusions of the project .......................................................................................... 13

3.1 Effectiveness ............................................................................................................. 13

3.2 Relevance .................................................................................................................. 13

3.3 Impact ........................................................................................................................ 14

3.4 Sustainability .............................................................................................................. 16

3.5 Efficiency ................................................................................................................... 16

4. Organisational Capacity ....................................................................................................... 18

4.1 Compatibility with Vision and Mission......................................................................... 18

4.2 Organisational growth ................................................................................................ 20

4.3 The Policies and procedures ...................................................................................... 21

4.4 Governance and Management ................................................................................... 22

4.5 The key constraints .................................................................................................... 22

5. Conclusions and Recommendations ................................................................................. 24

5.1 The SRHR Project ..................................................................................................... 24

5.2 BNKS the Organistion ................................................................................................ 26

ANNEXURES .......................................................................................................................... 28

Annex 1: Field Visit Schedule ............................................................................................ 28

Annex 2: SWOT analysis ................................................................................................... 29

Annex 3: List of literature reviewed .................................................................................... 30

Annex 3: Terms of Reference ............................................................................................ 31

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1. Introduction

1.1 Background

1.1.1 Working in seven Upazilas of Bandarban district with eight different projects and 113 staff today, Bolipara Nari Kalyan Somity (BNKS) is one of the most prominent local NGOs run by the indigenous people in Bandarban. Established in 1991 with the objective of helping the disadvantaged communities of the area, BNKS has been contributing to some of the key sectors of development such as, healthcare, education, water and sanitation and creation of livelihood options for the disadvantaged ethnic population groups of the district.

1.1.2 Bandarban has long been a remote and underdeveloped district inhabited by about 10 different indigenous ethnic groups. According to one estimate it is among the three least developed and poorest districts of the country according to Human Poverty Index (HPI 2003). The small ethnic groups, some of which are as small as a few thousand people now living in remote hill terrains where there is almost no access to any basic public

service opportunities. Some of the communities live in utter deprivation and isolation adopting almost a primitive way of life. In the absence of access to knowledge, information and education, people are generally possessed by many different social ills such as prejudice, discrimination, and misconception about life within and outside the tribal area in which they dwell. However, with the introduction of some of the major religious faiths among some of the ethnic groups, a level of change and development within the families have become visible, but this has not, as can be imagined, caused much change in the overall economic and infrastructural status of the area that requires interventions from the government. This is however remarkable that despite the influence of these ‘new’ beliefs in the area, the indigenous peoples have managed to preserve their distinct cultural heritage and practices. Unfortunately though, some of the old beliefs and practices of these people may not be so conducive for any desired socio-economic progress or for the establishment of a just and developing social order. For example, discrimination between men and women, a lack of

awareness about the value of education, particularly for girl children - most of whom are married at a very

young age. Many of these people lack knowledge and awareness about primary healthcare and hygiene practices. As a result, people remain susceptible to many preventable diseases like diarrhoea, skin disease, malaria, anaemia and those related to malnutrition and reproductive healthcare.

1.1.3 The area in the past has also witnessed a lot of political violence which had retarded the development process. Conflicts between the Adivasis and non-Adivasi Bengali settlers still remain a major concern due, among other reasons, the latter group tending to encroach upon the common-access properties of the area and sometime even the privately owned land of the local people. The ethnic peoples of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) region have been campaigning for their political rights for a long time,

Figure 1 : Bandarban in Poverty Map

Bandarban

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which is expected to give them an increased level of authority over their resources and in the governance of the region. This has been one of the key factors responsible for the continued deprivation and underdevelopment of the extremely marginalised groups of indigenous peoples of Bandarban.

1.1.4 However, the country takes pride in the rich cultural and environmental diversity that it has, which is largely comprised of this group of people and the idyllic natural beauty of the region which attracts visitors from far and wide. It is unfortunate that development work for this beautiful and scenic region of the country has remained very slow and very limited. The poorer people of the area continue to suffer from food insecurity, ill health, lack of education and related services. Inadequate efforts to create alternative employment opportunities have further exacerbated the socio-economic situation of the area. The prevalence of malaria and diarrhoeal diseases is not only very high; they claim many lives each year. Vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, neo-natal tetanus and similar health problems are endemic. The lack of general health-care facilities and a lack of awareness about basic health rights, including sexual and reproductive health rights, among the population groups contribute to a host of other problems. In the particular context of Bandarban, the SRHR would appear to represent one of the fundamental conditions for development. What difference has this project achieved for the ‘beneficiary’ groups there? How far have the communities been sensitised and made aware about the ‘problems’ addressed by the project and what greater impact, if any, has been caused by this particular programme intervention of BNKS supported by Diakonia Bangladesh? These are some of the questions we have tried to explore and get answers on by this evaluation.

1.2 The mission of BNKS

1.2.1 BNKS with its Mission “To improve the social, economic and cultural status of the marginalized people of the Chittagong Hill Communities, especially the women and children…..,” has the priority of building human capacity of the people with whom it works through education and training and the protection of mother and child health. With this aim in view, BNKS has now expanded its scope of work through a number of large and small project interventions. The table below lists a few of the major recent intervention programmes and the name of their sponsors.

Table 1: The Key current projects of BNKS

Title of the Project Supported by Period

Organising Ethnic Societies for Improving their Social Safety (OESISS)

Action Aid Bangladesh

Jun. 2006 – Dec. 2016

Improve Educational Services for Children of Indigenous Groups in CHT (IESC)

Save the Children International

Jan. 2011 – Dec. 2013

Socio-Economic Empowerment of Rural Communities (SEERC) Project

Inter-Cooperation Bangladesh

Sep. 2009 - August 2012

Strengthening Reproductive Health Project (SRH) Diakonia May 2011 to December 2014

Conservation through Practice (Facilitating conservation of medicinal plants...)

IUCN Bangladesh May 2011 - April 2014

Community Managed Water and Sanitation Prog. in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CMWSP-CHT)

NGO Forum Bangladesh and EC

July 2009 - Ongoing

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1.2.2 The list of its current projects show that BNKS has focussed its interventions mainly on health, hygiene and women’s development as befits its name and objectives (BNKS stands for Bolipara Nari Kalyan Somity or Bolipara organisation for women’s welfare).

1.2.3 In 2011, BNKS had proposed this project on Reproductive Health Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Bandarban to Diakonia Bangladesh for assistance. The latter had agreed and supported a pilot during 2011, following which the three year project (Strengthening Reproductive Health Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Bandarban- SRHR) with an initial budget of Tk.7 million, was approved. This evaluation was conducted towards the end of its first full phase. Alongside the evaluation of the SRHR project, we have also conducted a brief assessment of the organisational capacity of BNKS. Not only because one of the four results of the project was on management capacity improvement, but because, Diakonia Bangladesh wished to have an independent assessment of the overall organisational capacity of its new partner.

1.3 The SRHR project

1.3.1 The core objective of the project, “Strengthening reproductive health rights of ethnic minorities in Bandarban” has been to ensure improved access to basic reproductive health services in order to reduce maternal and child mortality and reduce gender discrimination - a major socio-political and cultural problem by which women and adolescent girls are subjected to many disadvantages and deprivation. The project has four ‘Results’ by which to achieve the above objective, i.e., a) enhanced community support to organised groups, b) raise awareness on reproductive health and related rights, c) reduce discrimination against women, and d) enhancing project management capacity of BNKS. The work is spread over 21 villages of 3 Upazilas, although the focus concentrated on 15 villages that have had a pilot phase in 2011. Only seven members of the staff are directly responsible for the SRHR project (out of a total of 113 members staff). The project has work in three high schools (one in each Upazila) and adolescent groups in the villages. There were 3,469 direct beneficiaries and 2,676 indirect beneficiaries among different ethnic groups such as Marma, Khumi, Bawm, Tipra and Chakma.

1.4 Objective of evaluation

1.4.1 The key objective of the evaluation was to produce an independent assessment of the project’s performance. It is intended to present evidence in support of the project’s strengths and weakness, with particular reference to effectiveness, impact, efficiency and sustainability. Diakonia support to BNKS was also meant to strengthen its technical and organisational capacity. The evaluation has therefore had a look at the organisation as a whole, in terms of its structure, governance, policies, as well as work approach and concept of change. So this has tried to highlight some of the good practices produced by the project and also undertaken a critical analysis of the process of organisational growth and development. We shall discuss below the process we have adopted to conduct this evaluation.

1.4 Methodology

1.4.1 The general approach adopted for this evaluation was that of an “appreciative inquiry (AI)” method, highlighting the positive aspects on which to build - rather than focusing only on the problems. It has also adopted a participatory approach with the staff of the organisation contributing to the process, with their own assessment of what they perceived as their strength and weakness. The purpose and approach of the evaluation was explained to the staff right at the beginning during an introductory meeting with BNKS in Bandarban. The staff had reciprocated this by giving a detailed and very helpful presentation on their organisation and work. This was followed up by a self-

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appraisal workshop with the senior staff of BNKS using a SWOT analysis approach. Through discussions with different staff, we have also tried to check if the interventions had been on track and were meeting the project objectives.

1.4.2 Before the field work was undertaken an evaluation plan was prepared based on a study of some of the basic project related documents. Some key evaluation questions were developed for the purpose and the process to be followed was underlined. Information on the organisation and its policies were also gathered beforehand which was complemented later by a detailed presentation on the organisation and its work - given by the staff, before we set out to visit the project sites and community groups.

1.4.3 In order to collect evidence of change and impact, an extensive information gathering and analysis was undertaken through visits to the pre-selected four project sites to cover the four key reference groups belonging to Marma, Tipra, Khumi and Bawm communities. The four locations are spread over long distances from each other in three different Upazilas, i.e., Bandarban, Thanchi and Ruma. This gave us a chance to observe a reasonable variety both in terms of population groups, their varying level and nature of deprivation, and how the project work had left an impact on them. During our visit to each of the sites, besides looking around the neighbourhood and speaking with some people, we have conducted several Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with the group members to make an in-depth assessment of the changes caused by the project, and their participation in it.

1.4.4 We have reviewed many relevant literatures (e.g. Annual Reports, programme documents, procedures, manuals, etc.) both about the project and about BNKS. However, we realised during the process that availability of data gathered through an effective PME system, would have been more helpful for the evaluation process, but its scarcity was partly compensated by our detailed probe with the village development groups (VDGs) and reviewing their register books. In the absence of proper qualification of the “Baseline Survey” data presented in a report which had many black & white charts and tables, which was useful only in a limited way. A narrative summary of the key findings could have been very useful, but unfortunately the graphs and charts were not self-explanatory.

1.4.4 Scanty data and lack of relevant literature made it difficult to undertake a more detailed analysis of our findings. Another limitation of this evaluation was its inability to visit any of the 3 High Schools with which the project worked, as the students were having their exams during our visit. Limited time did not allow us to interact with a wider group of people, yet we have managed to speak with a number of important key informants like, the Chair of an Upazila Parishad (Ruma), an UP member of Bandarban Sadar Upazila and a couple of members of the Executive Board of BNKS. Before we wrapped up our field mission to Bandarban, a preliminary feed-back on the key findings by the evaluation team was shared at a meeting participated by all senior staff and a few members of the Executive Committee.

Figure 2: A Bawm mother with child

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2. SRHR project in Bandarban context

2.1 Scope and importance of the project

2.1.1 It was known that when the United Nations (UN) continues negotiations on a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for its post-2015 development agenda, population experts were hopeful that reproductive health will be given significant recognition in the final line-up of the SDG goals1. If viewed from this perspective the relevance and importance of this project on sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) implemented by BNKS (Bolipara Nari Kalyan Somity) does not require much elaboration. Its close link to women’s empowerment and well-being, particularly for those living in remote hill areas of Bandarban district of Bangladesh made this particular evaluation a great learning experience for the evaluation team. We have briefly discussed the objectives of the project in the Introduction of this report; before we move on to discussing its effects and impact, here are a few basic facts/figures of the project.

2.1.2 The project was implemented in 27 hamlets (para or village) by establishing one group in each para comprising of about 20 men and women. Although, BNKS works in seven different Upazilas of Bandarban district, this particular project is implemented in 3 Upazilas of Ruma, Thanchi and Bandarban Sadar. Adolescent boys and girls of 3 schools in 3 Upazilas are given awareness raising training on reproductive health rights. The project works among five of the ten different ethnic communities of Bandarban district, i.e., Marma, Bawm, Chakma, Mro and Khumi. Fifty one traditional birth attendants (TBAs) have been trained to provide improved child delivery services to these areas. Each TBA received a ‘delivery kit’ with some basic instruments. There is a small team of seven member full-time staff who are responsible for the implementation of the project.

2.1.1 Accomplishment of results

2.1.2 A review of the progress reports prepared by BNKS shows that considerable success has been achieved in all respects. We have reviewed the reports produced by BNKS until the middle of the last year of the phase, i.e., end of June 2014. In this section we will mainly try to give a qualitative assessment of the achievements based on our field observations and review of the literature. By reviewing the ‘results’ vis-a-vis the objectives, we can broadly divide the project into three parts. The main part is dedicated to improving maternal and child health, including safe child-birth: the second is about reducing gender discrimination and the empowerment of women: and the third is focused on raising the general awareness of human rights with particular emphasis on sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR). While the first two components are mainly delivered through the organised village development groups (VDGs), the third is mainly with outside stakeholders that includes adolescent school students and members of the civil society, through ‘day observation’, special talks or seminars. Of course, there is a fourth section of the project given under Result 4, which is about raising institutional capacity of BNKS with particular emphasis on improving management and technical capacity of its staff. We have dealt with this subject separately in the 4th chapter of this report under Organisational Capacity Development.

We shall discuss below the first three components of the project to see how far these have been successful in achieving the project objectives. Apart from the available project literature, the following is based on our meetings with six different village

1 “Reproductive Rights to Take Centre Stage at U.N. Special Session”, UNITED NATIONS, Jul 10. 2014

(IPS), please click: Reproductive And Sexual Rights

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development groups met in four separate meetings in three Upazilas of Thanchi, Ruma and Bandarban Sadar. The evaluation team has also spoken with the trained TBAs and checked their Kit Boxes used during child delivery. Besides, a few key informants from outside the organisation and its reference groups have also been consulted regarding the value of the project.

2.2 Reproductive Health Services

2.2.1 In the absence of almost any access to modern health services, including sexual and reproductive health service for the remote Adivasi communities living in utter isolation and deprivation, the value of the BNKS’s intervention is certainly very high. But how effective is the service? The strategy adopted by the organisation in this respect combines formation of village groups, often mixed by men and women, provide local mid-wives with training on basic obstetrics and with a ‘delivery kit’; and appoint paramedics who provide back-up advice and supervisory services. Arrangements are also made so that complicated or emergency cases are referred to medical centres attended by qualified doctors.

Figure 3: Eden para members

2.2.2 As planned, 27 SRHR (sexual and reproductive health rights) groups have been formed who were active. According to the latest report, 51Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) were practicing hygienic and safe delivery methods in the area. During the visit of this evaluation team, the ‘delivery kits’ supplied by the project were checked and we learned how they were using them. The TBA inputs turned out to be one of the most successful and valued services the project has delivered. When we asked women group members if they had observed any major change in the area since the project interventions started? Their first reply was that the improved TBA service has made child delivery a less fearful event now. According to women members, since the introduction of the training and delivery Kits, the incidence of death during child birth has reduced significantly. Since access to modern medical facilities to these remote communities was absent and virtually unknown, they were dependent on local ‘doctors’ or TBAs who had extremely limited knowledge on reproductive health. Women informed us how in the past people observed huge amount of bleeding during the ‘delivery’ process often causing death to mother or/and child. They were confident that this has now been a thing of the past. For example, the three days training the TBAs from Uji Headmanpara received in Bandarban has taught them how not to compromise on

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cleanliness. They now used gloves, washed the blades and scissors with soap and boiling water. Similarly, when in Ruma we visited the Bawm community up in the hills, they have also highlighted this service as one of the most useful, because it has since helped to make child bearing a much easier and safer thing. Although, their access to the government health centre was relatively easy, they did not go to the Upazila health complex unless the case was particularly complicated. TBAs said they have been trained to know what constituted complications and how to refer those cases to the medical doctors, something they did not know before.

2.2.3 However, in Holiram Tripura para, one of the remotest project sites, there was no trained TBA now. Since the death of the trained TBA, a non-trained person handles the delivery cases. If there was a difficult case, they would take the pregnant mother to Bandarban which is 73 kilometres away by a long boat and bus ride. The TBA in Hoitan Khumi para said that she had received five days training from Bandarban and practices child-delivery cases with utmost safety and care. Discussing with the TBA the evaluation team realised that since the woman did not have any literacy or numeracy skills, she was practically handicapped in some respects. For example, she does not use the weighing machine at all for she cannot read the numbers. She had no schooling as access to school was still very limited in the area. A children’s school was known to exist by an CARITAS, a national NGO, but there was no literacy programme for adults. In contrast, the group in Eden para, Ruma, was very different, where everybody was literate and access to government health complex was secure as they lived near the town.

Figure 4 In Tripura para

2.2.4 As far as ‘reproductive health’ was concerned the project intervention through training and awareness raising of the TBAs and formation of village groups was generally very successful and effective. Men and women valued the service very highly as this has visibly reduced the incidence of mortality rate for pregnant mothers and infants. Of course the role of the field staff (organiser/officer) in this respect has been very crucial, because the community members rely on his/her knowledge and advice.

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The staff appeared to have a very good rapport with the community and they have been able to earn the respect of the disadvantaged groups of people.

2.2.5 Some limitations however, seemed to lie in the process of work and management system, which has room for improvement and further efficiency. For example, the group meetings do not seem to take place unless a staff member from BNKS gathers them together and the frequency of these meetings, according to the group register, has been very thin. Sometimes meetings are held once after two months, in other times once a month. For a programme of this nature which aims to change the age-old prejudice and misconceptions on reproductive health, as well as changing gender relations, - it requires a more intensive engagement of men and women in the communities. Otherwise there is every chance that the results of these efforts would quickly fade before they are able to make a positive and durable impression in the minds of the deprived people. Our focus group discussions and review of the meeting registers did not reflect the expected intensity of interaction. In the absence of a good monitoring and record keeping system, we have no other way to know to what extent the ‘beneficiary’ groups were practicing or experiencing change. The resolution books or the registers can be a useful tool to record the meeting decisions and pledges made by the group members for changed behaviour and actions. It may also note down the practical actions taken by the members in respect of SRHR and related matters. These registers are however, under-utilised.

2.3 Reduction of discrimination and violence

2.3.1 We can see many forms of discrimination in the society mainly imposed by those who hold a greater degree of power than others. It is generally agreed that the disadvantaged Adivasi groups living in the Hill Tracts, are one of the most discriminated against, and marginalised population groups in the country. They are generally deprived of their basic rights. At another level, unfortunately, discrimination also exists within these communities, most notable of these are the relationship between men and women – as elsewhere in Bangladesh. But why is gender equality so important? It is important because in its absence, it means a denial of human rights. That is why the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) has emphasised on promoting gender equality, empowerment of women (3 and 5) as well as improve maternal health respectively.2 Similarly, the new sustainable development agenda by the UN for the post MDG period, is going to continue its emphasis on the reduction of all forms of discrimination, particularly considering the social context in many developing countries such as Bangladesh, where sustained economic and social progress has been seriously affected by a significant number of its people – often disproportionately its women and girls who continue to live in poor health, lack education and/or skills needed for their own and their families’ development, and are subjected to many forms of violence.

2.3.2 The project on SRHR has made an impact on women (in particular), who have realised that they can also make decisions like their male counterparts regarding important family matters as well as matters related to having children or not. Our probes with both men and women have elicited a positive response in this respect: “in the past we never discussed the issue, but now we jointly decide if we will have a baby or not?” (Khumipara FGD). However the discussion also reveals that irrespective of women and men, the community preference continues to remain on male children: “everybody is happy when we have a boy, but we also accept girl as they are very useful in the family” (ibid). Indeed, from the physical observation around the village, particularly in Khumipara and Uji Headmanpara, only women were seen working, while men basked

2 United Nations, We can End Poverty by 2015: the millennium Development Goals, 2011 online:

http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/

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under the trees chatting their time away. The pictures below taken during our visit would illustrate the situation:

Figure 5: Women work while men bask under the shade of a tree.

2.3.3 The project through its awareness raising intervention, may have helped create certain changes in the way women think today in terms of gaining an increased sense of self-respect, but it did not look as if this was enough to make a dent in the particular structural incongruity in which the ethnic communities in Bandarban lived. For example, in place of dowry demanded from the girl’s family by the boy’s, as is common practice in most places in the sub-continent, a Khumi man during the marriage would pay a bride-price of a hundred silver (equivalent to Tk.400,000/US$ 5,000) to the family of the girl. At first it sounded like the community respected women so highly that they put a high stake on them for those seeking the hand of a woman. So, how did the community think about this custom? A family having many girls or women should be very rich! How did the poor men manage to pay such high sums of money?

2.3.4 Our further probe on this issue revealed a picture which turned out to be very different from what we had guessed. To start with, men do not pay the dower money up-front, they make a verbal commitment which is often not honoured and, after a few years, conveniently forgotten. The weak social position of a woman does not allow her to demand it for her parents, because the most likely consequence of this would be that she is sent back to her poor parents. Both the parents and the woman somehow try their best to avoid such a situation. Of course, the sums for bride-price varied. Not according to beauty or educational attainment of the girl, but the ability and skill to work hard and earn a livelihood for the family. For example, women who can work well in the field for paddy, or fruit cultivation, weeding the land, milling of rice (by pestle and mortar as shown in the picture above), would be well treated. If a woman is sick for a prolonged period, she would be sent back to her parents. A young woman in the family of her husband, is viewed like a machine that can generate income and produce children. Where woman are judged by her physical abilities only, we wonder how the discussions on rights are conducted and what impact they can possibly create in their minds.

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2.3.5 The question regarding the incidence of violence against women would be returned by simply saying that men no longer beat women these days. When probed further with suggestions like, how do people react to a situation when there is a disagreement between a woman and a man? The answer was, she would be sent back to her parents. The women participants agreed that for a woman from a poorer family, nothing can be more painful than this. Apart from being a disgrace to the family, the woman would be a burden for her parents unless she can eke out a living. If she has young children to feed, the situation can be even harsher. Moreover, this would put a seal on the prospect of the family ever getting any of the unpaid dower money the man had promised. From the FGDs we did not get many more stories of violence against women, but we thought this much was enough to illustrate the picture of discrimination and unequal status of woman. How did the project intervention made a difference in the situation now, if any? The answers we received (sometimes through translation) were often patchy but positive. We have noted them in a positive spirit because; the issues are surely understood and respected as important by the people who were not familiar with these concepts before. People now seemed to understand, with some difficulty though, what constituted a “right”. We however, felt that this needed an increased emphasis because in order to attain sustainable change, their assertion is very important so that the concerned authorities and institutions become more ‘responsive’ to their demands and needs.

2.3.6 We did not see the training module used for the purpose, and our probes on this issue did not elicit any conclusive response. Yet, it was somehow clear that women did realise that some of the customs as above infringed upon their freedom as a human being and obstructed their way towards establishing equality. Under the situation, how did the project envisage changing such customs which effectively treated women as semi-servile labour? We have also learned that the people of the hills are mostly guided by their own customary laws and social norms - many of which are not consistent with the laws of the land. For example, women of the Tripura community do not inherit any property, and the idea of ownership and access to (landed) property as a whole, has a completely different meaning for the Adivasi communities in general. BNKS needs to work hard to find a way out because, no significant progress in gender equality is possible by keeping these values and practices alive.

2.3.7 There are certain superstitions among the Bandarban hills people which have over many years’ of practice, turned into unbreakable law. Some of these are not only very unhelpful for rational thinking but also a source of practical disadvantage for the people. For example, a communal ‘law’ of the area often prevents critically ill people to visit a medical centre or a hospital for advanced treatment. The reason is, if someone dies in a hospital or outside the village, the body cannot be brought back into the area for burial, not even to his/her own house in the village. It is regarded as ominous to allow the entry of the body of someone who has expired outside the village. Similarly, there is another negative social practice in Bandarban hills which does not allow pregnant mothers, from the period of their conception till three months after the child’s birth, to eat nutritious food like fish, meat or egg, precisely the period when mothers need these the most. For some strange reasons, they believe that the consumption of such food would harm the pregnant mother and her child both mentally and physically.

2.3.8 Although interventions by different social development organisations have been able to achieve a level of change, completely winning the hearts and minds of the indigenous peoples would still take time, given that the fundamental conditions for change are absent for many people there. As long as their access to basic education and health services together with livelihood options are not secure, their level of enlightenment will continue to remain low. This would in turn, negatively affect their overall quality of human development. With fast declining access to cultivable land (open-access land) in the area for the indigenous people who have very little alternative

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choice for earning a living, and when the overall political and economic reality of the Chittagong Hill Tracts has experienced a major constraint by the influx of Bengali settlers into the area, an objective assessment of the situation is going to be very useful. This would hopefully provide some useful directions for the development organisations and their programme interventions. This is likely to benefit all different development organisations and programmes with insight and information that would bring about increased level of effectiveness for their interventions in the area.

2.4 Empowerment of Women

2.4.1 The default theory of change for this project is, achievements in reproductive health rights (SRHR) and increased knowledge and awareness about gender equality among men and women from disadvantaged communities, will empower women and boost the process of socio-economic development of the area. The methods adopted here for change include increasing awareness about different prejudices and negative social practices that leave a detrimental effect on the society. For example, removing misconceptions about the ability of women; that men and women have equal rights, and the service institutions, need to be more responsive and accountable to the people in the communities regarding their duties and responsibilities. This would enable, particularly the women, to attain self-respect and self-confidence. The project has been reasonably successful in achieving that objective, although no ostensible sign would be immediately visible by a visit to the community villages, as explained below.

2.4.2 The village based groups are the focal points for programme activities which are participated mainly by women, but sometimes a few male members also join in. This practice gave them a chance to learn about many issues related to reproductive health as well as the rights of the people. When they were asked how these discussions helped them, they said they could now realise how many of their ideas related to child birth and reproductive health were wrong. They said, they have also learned how early marriage and early motherhood affects the health. What has been the result of this learning? The reply was women could now argue against under-age marriage of their girls. Married women could now decide when to have a baby or not. A few men attending some of these meetings acknowledged that women were increasingly playing a role in such matters which was previously not done. In all the four communities we have visited, people have confirmed that maternal and child mortality during birth has been significantly reduced since the TBAs returned with improved training on birth attendance, and since a paramedic (in some of the working areas) has started to visit the community. Communities living close to the Upazila centre now know that free health services are given there by qualified physicians. For example, Bawm women of Edenpara said that the programme has helped them get introduced to the Upazila health complex and people from their community often visited the place and received free medical service.

2.4.3 In the context of reported slow progress of MDG 5 to reduce maternal mortality, BNKS project has made an impressive progress in this which mostly depends on achieving gender equality and realizing women’s rights. They appeared to have made the right mix of interventions to achieve its success. Inequalities and discrimination based on income, location, disability and ethnicity intersect with gender and are often mutually reinforcing. The SRHR project in Bandarban has rightly chosen to ‘attack’ the deeply entrenched social disparity couched inside a strong male domination, prejudice against women and denial of their rights, together with a health intervention - have worked very well. So the process of women’s empowerment has had a positive start, though its ‘political’ aspect represented by assertion of their “rights” looked relatively subdued.

2.4.4 The programme otherwise has made a successful start in removing social disparities as well as cultural barriers dominated by superstition and prejudice, but its

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“rights orientation” experienced a comparatively low achievement which would have played a strong role in the process of attaining empowerment of women. The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), representing one of the most disadvantaged regions of the country, deserves to be served by the state sponsored special programmes (though there are some) with particular focus on the indigenous peoples and women. The communities need to be made aware of this so that they can make their demands to the appropriate institutions felt. Unfortunately, except the Ruma group, the other three communities living in significant poverty and marginalisation were barely linked with service institutions.

2.4.5 BNKS programme in these remote areas offer certain services which may not be sustained for a long time to come. It is true that some of these communities live in such remote areas that their proximity to service institutions are far removed. Efforts must be undertaken to make these institutions reach out to these under-served communities, while the people in these communities should also make their demands heard directly by the authorities. At the same time, the staff of BNKS needs to have orientation training on RBA, so that they can effectively sensitise the community people to their rights and inspire them to this effect. The people of the area who are not served with a school for their children should demand one, the area which does not have a health centre within its reach should ask for introducing alternative ways to provide health services to them. NGO interventions in raising awareness and motivating people to collectively address their problems are very useful, but they cannot offer infrastructural solutions and it is not within their remit. Therefore, BNKS needs to find ways to mobilise a public voice in support of their rights to have sustainable delivery of services through appropriate infrastructure development in some of the priority areas such as health, education and livelihoods. It is time to focus more on resilience building of the communities rather than providing piecemeal services which does not bring sustainable development for them.

Figure 6 View of a Marma village

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3. Key Conclusions of the project

This main conclusions of the SRHR project have been presented here according to the key DAC criteria of the OECD3

3.1 Effectiveness

3.1.1 The reproductive health rights groups formed in 27 villages or paras have been useful to the communities in learning the basics of reproductive health and rights of women in deciding on having babies. These groups were also helpful in making men and women aware about gender relations and the importance of fostering equality in all spheres of life. Although, specific details are not very well recorded in the absence of a good PME system, the evaluation team, through their FGDs and review of group registers, have learned that women have attained a satisfactory level of awareness of these issues. The 51 traditional birth attendants trained in handling safe child delivery together with basic knowledge on gynaecology have made a major difference in ensuring a significantly improved reproductive health in terms of reduced miscarriage and maternal morbidity and mortality.

3.1.2 The project has been quite successful in achieving the objectives of strengthening reproductive health rights of the ethnic communities in selected areas of Bandarban. Mortality of pregnant mother and infants has significantly declined with the skilled handling of child birth by the trained TBAs. Gender discrimination in the project areas has also declined with women earning better income from different IGAs and were better respected by the community members as compared to the past.

3.1.3 We have two key observations in this respect which could and still can improve the quality of intervention. We thought the rights issues are still rather fuzzy in the project. Members of the community we spoke to were hardly able to explain what constituted rights for them, and how did they assert their rights. We had an impression that the staff of BNKS needed a thorough orientation on this subject. Moreover, the project needed to make a more concerted effort in linking the communities with public health delivery systems and institutions. So far, it has only been done in a very limited way notwithstanding the fact that some of the communities lived in remote hilly terrains. The TBAs needed the basic literacy and numeracy skill in order to perform better. While the need for tracking changes in the weight for pregnant mothers and new born babies is very important, supplying the illiterate TBAs with weighing scales who cannot read the digits, is not so useful. We thought the introduction of adult literacy classes with a strong accent on rights and gender awareness, would be a useful addition to the project.

3.2 Relevance

3.2.1 Hunger, health and hygiene are said to be the three most pressing problems of the people of Bandarban. The project has chosen a specific health need, reproductive health, which has been a major cause of maternal and neonatal deaths. Bangladesh has been successful in reducing maternal mortality rate to 75% of the 1990 rate. According to informed sources, the mortality

3 DAC stands for Development Assistance Committee of OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and

Development).

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rate in Bandarban has been higher than the national average. The table on the right indicates that only around twenty percent of births were attended by skilled health personnel in Chittagong Division in 2009, the coverage in Bandarban is estimated to be lower than that. Moreover the practice of under-age marriage of girls, high level of gender discrimination, the lack of access to health facilities and untrained traditional birth attendants comprise a formidable challenge that affect the overall quality of life for the people of the area. The project has chosen an intervention strategy which is not only relevant to MDG goals 3, 4 and 5 related to promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment, reduction of child mortality and improvement of maternal health, these have been among the most pressing developmental challenges for the country, as reflected in its various policy and plan documents (e.g., the Sixth national Five Year Plan, PRSP, Perspective Plan 2021, Women’s Development Policy 2011). The relevance of the project with the MDG goals has been noted in the project document, we would only refer here to the findings of a UN taskforce on MDG 3 that has recommended an expanded scope for this, i.e., gender equality and empowerment of women in relation to SRHR of women4. This might help BNKS to decide in future to adopt an appropriate strategy for its own work in this sector.

3.2.2 “With poor health our workforce cannot contribute to a dynamic economy. Health is crucial for our economy,” said Hossain Zillur Rahman, an eminent socio-economist in a recently held national conference on Universal Health Coverage- UHC in Dhaka5. The study findings presented at the conference said that around 6.4 million (4%) of the population get poorer in the country every year due to excessive costs of health services, 64% of health expenditure goes out of individual’s pockets. Public health expenditure only covers 26% of the need, while NGOs and projects like this one by BNKS cover the remaining 10 per cent gap. This clearly indicates the importance of the project both in enhancing economic and social empowerment, particularly for the disadvantaged women with whom the project has chosen to work. The specific set of problems (e.g., maternal and child health; gender inequality, livelihoods) addressed by the project, constitutes some of the fundamental rights of the reference group with a focus on women and adolescent girls. The rights based approach of the project has not been as strong as expected, but thoughts should be given on how to make it more sustainable and replicable.

3.3 Impact

3.3.1 The interventions of the project will go a long way in changing attitude and behaviour of the reference group towards health, hygiene and the women’s empowerment issues that it has promoted. Awareness raised on community rights to health and livelihoods and non-discrimination of women and girls at homes and outside are going to influence everybody else in the communities they belong to. Similarly, the younger generation (adolescent school girls and boys) who are growing up with improved knowledge, information and attitude, which are completely different from those of their predecessors, is going to see a radically different society over time.

3.3.2 Women’s participation in different (non-agricultural) income earning activities and changed behaviour of the male members of households are strong indications of increased empowerment of women. Moreover, the declining rate of child mortality in the

4The UN Millennium Project Taskforce on MDG 3 recommended that the goal should include targets on

seven strategic areas: Post-primary education (including secondary school, but also other kinds of non-formal education); sexual and reproductive rights and health; investment in infrastructure; property and inheritance rights; employment; seats in national parliaments and local governments; and ending violence against women. Please see http://www.unmillenniumproject.org/documents/Gender-complete.pdf 5 “Costly healthcare adds to poverty”, The Daily Star, 23 December 2014, p.1, Dhaka.

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areas has contributed to achieving the MDG goals for Bangladesh which now stands at 44 per thousand live birth (2011) compared to 146 twenty five years ago in 1990. According to the same source (BBS)6, infant (under 12 months) mortality rate was also down from 94 to 37 during the same period. Similarly, the maternal mortality rate was reduced from 478, per hundred thousand in 1990 to 218 in 2011. The UN figures, which are based on estimates, show a much steeper fall in the maternal mortality rate from a starting point of around 800 in 1990 to 240 in 2010. Although Bandarban specific data was not available, this can still mean that efforts by projects like this one have contributed to achieving this goal for Bangladesh.

Figure 7 Meeting with Marma group

3.3.3 There are however reasons for concern which still need to be addressed. For example, there are some socio-cultural and structural issues which, if left untouched, might be to spoil the achievements attained so far. One such issue is related to some negative bias against women among the ethnic groups that do not allow women to inherit property, while the incidence of under-age marriage of girls remains high. Although, some of the participants tried to disown the existence of such practices, one could clearly see by looking at some of the young mothers - that they were hardly over 14 or 15 years old7. Moreover, in many of the areas where the project works, they do not have any public health and educational facilities, while the situation in other remoter areas is known to be worse. For the impact of the project to sustain for a long time, the changes so far needs to be institutionalised. In order to deepen its positive impacts, the project needs to make some efforts to lobby with the local administration and political leaders, so as to encourage them to expand at least health and educational infrastructures in the remote areas where private sector investment is not going to come very soon.

3.3.4 Capacity building training to TBAs through government officials has helped the project establish a useful link which indirectly extends the arm of the government service

6 http://203.112.218.76:8080/documentation/Bangladesh/FactSheetBangladesh2013.pdf

7 For ‘evidence’, please see the cover page picture of the young mother from Khumi tribe.

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Coverage of the SRHR project:

District: Bandarban District

Upazila: 03 (Bandarban Sadar, Ruma and Thanchi)

Total Para: 27 (Ethnic groups covered: Marma, Bawm, Chakma, Mro, Khumi)

03 High School (01 in each Upazila)

27 SRHR groups formed in 3 Upazilas;

51 persons Trained TBA in 3 upazila

27 Adolescent Groups formed in 3 upazila

Staffs : Male:-01 Female:-06 Total:-07

Direct Beneficiary: 3,469, Indirect Beneficiaries : 2,676

delivery system to remote rural areas. This might in future help the public health system to reach out to all its citizens. The improved training for the TBAs organised by the project has not only enabled the birth attendants to gain improved midwifery skills, it has been a source of learning for the community as a whole, about some of the basic health and hygiene issues contributing to an improved health and sanitation conditions in the area. As mentioned before, although the rights orientation of the project is not very strong, the instance of TBA training given by the government health specialists made people aware of the responsibility by the government to serve the disadvantaged communities.

3.4 Sustainability

3.4.1 Most benefits created by the project will have a lasting impact on the people because of their particular non-material nature of inputs, with an emphasis on behavioural change, as for example, improved midwifery skills learned by the TBAs, the enhanced level of awareness of school students on reproductive health rights and community members’ increased sensitivity to the issues of gender equality and social justice. The learning process however, needs further consolidation through an increased coverage, organisation of refreshers courses for TBAs, and ensuring the continued practice among community members. Without this, it is going to be difficult to expect that the negative social practices that have travelled down the generations would be completely rooted out by a one-off intervention of a project. Moreover, the value of this intervention forms the basis for an overall transformation process towards change and development. This would require continued investment and expansion. Moreover, having observed the benefits, local communities are increasingly becoming interested in playing a more proactive role. This is the time to get community leaders to agree to adopt more substantial changes in their social customs and rules which are detrimental to their own progress. To ensure a more sustainable process of change, significant commitment and actions from the sides of the community needs to be carefully ensured.

3.4.2 The intensity of programme intervention and its close and systematic monitoring must be ensured in its future continuation and expansion. BNKS, as implementer of a number of other projects, needs to allocate appropriate attention to the quality and progress of this particular project. This can be achieved by enhancing the management and technical capacity of the staff. Appropriate planning, management and M&E tools need to be devised in order to track progress and produce more effective reports. The number of staff for the current size of the project the location of which is spread over many different Upazilas, need to be reviewed. An efficient staff management and staff development plan will be able to make a significant improvement in the quality of interventions and thus achieve greater sustainability of the project benefits.

3.5 Efficiency

3.5.1 About the level of efficiency of the project, the management of BNKS and responsible programme officers of Diakonia Bangladesh should be able to give a better assessment than this brief evaluation mission. Without having observed the day to day operation of the project, and the performance of the staff, this evaluation team can only say that in terms

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of financial and human resource outlay of the project, compared against its spread and depth, the SRHR project cannot be termed as expensive. In fact it has chosen a scope of work which is quite extensive for its budget (Tk.7 million for 3 years). The box on the right gives a statistical summary of the project.

3.5.2 The formation of 27 separate groups for women and men and 27 groups for adolescent boys and girls have helped raise the level of awareness regarding gender disparity, and the building awareness and skills on reproductive health rights. However, it still has room for improvement in its efficiency. To start with this is in the area of M&E. The overall organisational capacity in planning, monitoring and evaluation appear to be limited and very much project centric. The senior management of BNKS needs to give greater emphasis on the overall organisational growth, strengthen its central management system/capacity and ensuring that all the different project interventions together, meet the strategy objectives of the organisation. The remote locations of the projects often cause the organisation many different problems. A small contingent of only 7 staff (six of them women except the project head) implements the project with some supervisory support from the Programme Director and ED. This is a clear indication of efficiency, but only needs to make sure that the implementation has been most effective. The organisation needs to adopt a geographical strategy which would allow them to make the most efficient use of their time and expertise.

Figure 8 Children in Tripura para

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Table 2: The Operational Area of BNKS

UUppaazziillaa UUnniioonn UUnniioonn

CCoovveerraagg

ee

TThhaanncchhii Bolipara, Sadar, Tindu &Remakri

BBoolliippaarraa,,

TThhaanncchhii

SSaaddaarr aanndd

TTiinndduu

RRuummaa RRuummaa ssaaddaarr,,

GGeelleennggaa && PPaaiinndduu RRuummaa

ssaaddaarr &&

PPaaiinndduu

AAlliikkaaddaamm SSaaddaarr,,

cchhooiikkkkhhoonngg AAlliikkaaddaammssaa

ddaarr,,

cchhooiikkkkhhoonngg

BBaannddaarrbbaann

SSaaddaarr SSaaddaarr,, kkoohhaalloonngg,,

SSuuaallookk,,RRaajjvviillaa,,

TToonnkkaabboottii,,

SSaaddaarr,,

kkoohhaalloonngg,,

SSuuaallookk,,RRaajjvv

iillaa,,

TToonnkkaabboottii,,

RRoowwaannggcchh

aarrii RRoowwaannggcchhaarrii

ssaaddaarr,, NNaayyaa

ppaattttaann,,TTaarraacchhaa

NNaayyaa

ppaattttaann..

4. Organisational Capacity

4.1 Compatibility with Vision and Mission

4.1.1 This twenty four year old organisation has come a long way as a community based organisation with the objective of helping the extremely disadvantaged local women of the area since it was founded in Bolipara in 1989. Today it is quite a substantial institution with over hundred staff and many different projects spread over different parts of the district, as shown in the map below.

4.1.2 The roads in Bandarban district that pass through difficult hilly terrain are not the best in the country. Braving this difficult communication link between the Upazilas and unions, BNKS has made its best efforts to reach many of those ‘unreachable’ areas and their small ethnic communities living in utter deprivation and disadvantages. With its Headquarter in Bandarban Sadar at one of the districts, it is quite a challenge to manage its operations spread over five Upazilas. Although BNKS now has a set of well developed policies and procedures, its operational management structure, process and tools did not seem to be fully compatible for meeting the diversity and complexities the range of different projects offered.

4.1.3 The organisation now has a much broader set of objectives than previously. The key among these is building up human capacity through education and training among the disadvantaged communities, through the formation of village development groups. A special emphasis of its work has always been on providing health protection to women and children. Agriculture being the key source of employment for the people, its development with particular emphasis on income and employment generation has also been a major focus. Preservation of cultural rights, identities and values of the ethnic groups, establishing rights of women and children, and promoting transparent and accountable local governance systems have been an important thematic orientation of the organisation today, which is very much in line with its vision and mission as expressed in the following statements:

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Vision: Quality of life of the disadvantaged people of the Chittagong Hill Tracts sustainably improved so that they are empowered to live their lives in security, dignity and true to their cultural tradition whilst being able to be part of the mainstream development process of the country.

Mission: To improve the social, economic and cultural status of the marginalized people of the Chittagong Hill Community, especially the women and children, in a sustainable

way through developing their knowledge, capacity and services.

4.1.4 It would not be an exaggeration to say that both the vision and mission are ambitious in a positive sense of the term. Its current volume of work, resources and the size of the staff are all positioned and prepared to achieve these. The table below gives the major set of projects BNKS implements with assistance from different development partners.

Table 3: The six major projects and their sponsors

Title of the Project Supported by Period

Organising Ethnic Societies for Improving their Social Safety (OESISS)

Action Aid Bangladesh

Jun. 2006 – Dec. 2016

Improve Educational Services for Children of Indigenous Groups in CHT (IESC)

Save the Children International

Jan. 2011 – Dec. 2013

Socio-Economic Empowerment of Rural Communities (SEERC) Project

Inter-Cooperation Bangladesh

Sep. 2009 - August 2012

Strengthening Reproductive Health Project (SRH) Diakonia May 2011 to December 2014

Conservation through Practice (Facilitating conservation of medicinal plants and traditional health services to ethnic communities of Chitt. Hill Tracts)

IUCN Bangladesh May 2011 - April 2014

Community Managed Water and Sanitation Programme in Rural Poor Communities of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CMWSP-CHT)

NGO Forum Bangladesh and EC

July 2009 - Ongoing

4.1.5 The annual operational budget, although tending to fluctuate from year to year, in 2011 it reached to a peak of BDT 27.2 million demonstrating its ability to manage a high volume of operations with 113 members of staff. This may also indicate that the organisation has attained a level of capacity which can further expand and implement a larger sized operation with higher budgets. In this respect, the financial management tools and reports give a rather positive indication. However, based on the experience of one of the six major projects, it was not immediately clear, how effectively and efficiently the overall operation has been managed for producing successful results.

4.1.6 The indication this evaluation team has received in this respect is that the organisation has room for improvement in a couple of strategic management areas. For example, it needs to improve on its information gathering system, including its planning Monitoring and Evaluation (PME) system. The organisation may actually need to invest more resources to be able to introduce two important systems to improve its administrative and data management functions. This will necessitate capacity building training to all key staff, so that they are proficient in the use of a Management Information System (MIS) as well as the PME related tools. As an example, the staff needs to be able to understand and use the logical framework analysis (LFA) approach as most projects are planned and proposed using this structure.

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4.2 Organisational growth

4.2.1 Success of an organisation is often measured by its size and growth pattern. However, we all know that there are many other criteria for measuring success of an organisation than these two. The effectiveness of an organisation can be judged by the quality of its work, the impact they create, and the capacity of the organisation to innovate. In this evaluation we have tried to assess some of these aspects of BNKS. It is generally understood that the level of success in the quality of project implementation is dependent on organisational preparedness. A review of its systems, policies and procedures show that BNKS is now quite well developed to meet the requirements of financial and administrative discipline befitting a vibrant and active organisation. As we can see from the list below, the organisation now has a number of important policy and procedures documents in place:

Financial Management Manual, 1st Edition, February 2012

Staff Management Procedure, 2013

Draft Gender Policy, 2012

Open Information Policy (undated)

Complaints and Response Policy

Accountability Framework

Children’s Protection Policy (undated, but effective from April 2013)

4.2.2 Most of these are recently introduced, but are operational and effective as far as we have gathered. We have learned that the staff are aware of these and most of the rules and policies are being helpful to their work. Before we give an assessment on a few of those documents, it is important to mention that all such documents must have a date of their effectiveness, if not also the end date. It is also useful to indicate in the document that this policy or procedures manual will be reviewed and updated after a certain period, because some of the provisions or stipulations may soon become out of date or even irrelevant. For example, policy related to maternity leave of 120 days might need changing in order to reflect the National Women’s Development Policy 2011, where the provision is for six months. Similarly, based on implementation experience, many small changes in the documents might become necessary within a short time. That is why it is useful to have a commitment in this regard so that a dynamic environment prevails in the organisation. We shall discuss below a few of the documents we have reviewed.

Figure 9: Bawm women from Eden para

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4.3 The Policies and procedures

I. Financial Management Manual: Prepared with assistance from a competent external agency (Helal Uddin & Associates), this is a very comprehensive procedures document to ensure discipline in the financial and administrative management of BNKS. It combines accounting with an administrative system, which is probably thought to serve the best purpose of the organisation. It has detailed principles and mechanisms for internal control system, financial record keeping system, procurement policy including delegation of authority.

II. Staff Management Procedure: This is also quite comprehensive and a gender sensitive staff management manual. It covers a range of aspects, not very often seen in NGO procedure manuals, from “induction” to new staff to retirement and related benefits. Moreover it has a clause on the process of renewal of this manual (under 1.2) whenever necessary and by approval from the Executive Board. In section 2.2., we see a long list of 10 different ranks of staff. We wonder whether this is necessary or appropriate for a development organisation like BNKS. We thought this could be cut down to half, which might be administratively beneficial and ethically more appropriate. The good-practice examples the manual has includes:, i) The induction procedure, ii) different staff welfare funds, and iii) detailed grievance procedure. It also has a liberal provision for earned and annual leaves. The provision for maternity leave has a slight discrepancy to that of the national policy for women’s development, which may be reviewed and revised. The provision of a contributory provident fund has provision for 5% only, while most organisations who have this provision usually keep it at 10 percent. BNKS might think of changing this.

III. Gender Policy: The “Draft” gender policy is actually the “final” one with initials of the President and Secretary on each page. This is a very progressive policy document in the sense that it has well articulated provisions for “Affirmative action” against historical discrimination of women:

“To undertake affirmative action within the organisation for ensuring justice against discriminations by correcting the historically created disadvantages of certain sectors including ethnic women”

However, there are a couple of small ‘glitches’ which need to be corrected. For example, clause 9.3 states that maternity leave will be granted up to three times which, according to the staff management procedure is up to two children/times.

The gender sensitivity of the policy is very positive and practical as reflected in various different provisions where practical concerns of female staff has been taken into consideration. For example special consideration for female staff has been very clearly given in its travel and leave related provisions. Some of the provisions mentioned in it are probably noted for future actions, like for example, there is the mention of having a day-care centre for children of staff, but we have not seen one yet. Moreover, the provision for flexible working time for pregnant and lactating mothers is a praiseworthy inclusion in the policy.

IV. Other policy documents: The other policy instruments that BNKS has includes: Open Information Policy (OIP), Complaints and Response Policy, Accountability Framework, and Child protection policy which are all very succinct and well prepared. All of the above are very recent inclusions to BNKS. We hope reflection of their implications will soon be visible in the organisation. In order to monitor their implementation and adherence, periodical review should be planned and undertaken by constituting a special committee for the purpose. In any case, having these as officially adopted policy instruments indicates BNKS’ seriousness about them and its organisational strength.

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4.4 Governance and Management

4.4.1 This is an indigenous people’s organisation of Bandarban which is managed and governed entirely by the members of different ethnic communities. It has a 37 member General Committee and an all women seven member Executive Board. Participation of the Board in policy formulation to budget preparation and programme planning has been quite remarkable. The women leadership of BNKS is well respected for their dynamism and dedication both within and outside the organisation.

4.4.2 A ten member Management Committee is responsible for taking all major management decisions related to programme implementation and organisational management. In this committee, the Executive Director plays the role of a representative of the Executive Committee. All policy related recommendations of the Management Committee are conveyed to the Executive Committee by the Executive Director. This is how the management system remains accountable to the governing body of the organisation.

4.4.3 Although the management of the organisation is headed by a female Executive Director, senior level managers still seem to be dominated by male staff. Indeed, the male:female ratio of staff of this women’s organisation would look somewhat slanted towards men with women comprising only 50 against 63 male staff. The main reason for this was explained as the lack of availability of competent women professionals in the district, which was found to be not entirely untrue. It is expected that efforts will continue to fill future senior positions with female staff so that it maintains the true character of a woman led organisation which is formed and managed by women, and mainly works for women of the area. Moreover, as noted before, the operational management of the organisation needs to be better structured with appropriate people, tools such as PME and MIS systems, to ensure increased effectiveness in its programme delivery and to achieve results for deeper and wider impact.

4.5 The key constraints

4.5.1 The results of the self-appraisal exercise by the staff during the evaluation (see Annex 2), have been very useful for this evaluation. The evaluation team has tried to relate these findings with those of their own throughout the process. We have selected a couple of points from there for review. With regards to constraints the staff has referred to difficult communication link between the project sites and with the head office, constraints in oral communication with different reference groups as different ethnic communities speak different languages or dialects, lack of appropriate training tools for use in the groups, and a lack of training opportunities for the staff.

4.5.2 We have already discussed the issue of constraints related to physical communication as project sites are spread over distant places. In a way, the strength of the programme lies in BNKS’ ability to reach the ‘unreachable’ communities, something that many organisations tend to avoid with a covert “road-side” bias of their work. The difficulty of language communication can be overcome by hiring local assistants or volunteer students, if not by hiring staff from that community. The ability of BNKS to work with communities in far-away places deserves appreciation and this inclusive approach should be continued. In order to overcome the difficulties related to this, different strategies and options can be explored. One of them can be a geographic strategy plan to decide on working in select remote locations with possible residential facility for the staff and having branch offices in the nearby Upazila Headquarter as it has in Ruma. Otherwise, with its present limited PME/MIS capacity, there is a risk that work in the remote areas would turn out to be lacklustre and ineffective.

4.5.3 Lack of availability of specialist staff in Bandarban is indeed a genuine problem, particularly if we want to get qualified women staff. This problem can be addressed at

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least in two different ways. One is to offer an attractive compensation package so that Adivasi staff from other areas of Chittagong region find it lucrative enough to come and work in Bandarban. The other option may be in conjunction with the first one, by providing women staff with advanced capacity building training. We would encourage BNKS to consider developing a “Staff Development” plan with short and long term objectives.

4.5.4 The issue of current donor dependency of BNKS and no revenue generation opportunity of its own, needs thoughtful reflection and careful decision. For an organisation with a large sized staff, it naturally has a reason to be concerned about a situation when continuity of donor funding is suddenly slowed down, if not completely stopped! Many NGOs in the country build their own asset base as a back-up for such an unforeseen situation, but in the process it takes away a lot of their useful energy which is deserved by on-going development work. On the other hand, organisations which have strong rapport with, and the confidence of donors for their effective work and transparent financial and administrative management practice, there should not be any reason to worry because donors are likely to come forward to allay such fears by making longer term commitments. We think BNKS should focus on building a stronger set of projects with competent staff, a strong PME, and an efficient management system to generate strong evidence in support of change caused by its interventions. This should ensure stronger viability of the organisation as well as continued donor support to BNKS and its work.

Figure 10 A Khumi woman in Bolipara

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5. Conclusions and Recommendations

5.1 The SRHR Project

5.1 The importance of SRHR interventions will continue throughout the developing world for some time to come because, a) it cuts across three of the MDG goals (3-5) related to women’s empowerment and reproductive health - which have reportedly not had the expected level of progress and b) the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are known to be going to emphasise on these issues with increased focus. As far as Bangladesh is concerned, we cannot but continue to work on it more intensely because we still have a long way to go to achieve an acceptable level of gender equality, and an improved quality of reproductive health. This project by BNKS has gained some useful experience over the past three years on which they need to build further to create a more visible difference. The project has a very effective combination of work, that not only helps empowering women and girls; but surely helps to prepare the ground for an equitable and healthy socio-economic order to prevail in the remote areas that are mostly outside the mainstream development interventions. The SRHR project in Bandarban therefore has a strategic role to play in removing the deeply entrenched social disparities characterised by male domination, prejudice against women, and the denial of their rights. Therefore, the evaluation team is in favour of continuing the “Strengthening Reproductive Health Rights” project with certain caveats as given in this report.

5.2 Working in five of the seven Upazilas, the project has a comprehensive geographical and demographic coverage which focuses on the most disadvantaged ethnic communities living in the remote areas. However some of these areas are not completely “un-served”, though most of the current delivery of services is by non-government agencies which often tend to be of too short a term in nature. The “inclusive” approaches of BNKS intervention are however capable of making a relatively longer term difference. The two pronged approach of combining social awareness with some practical assistance comprising of appropriate technology and income earning skills, make it quite effective and are relevant to the needs of the reference groups.

5.3 Through a self-appraisal exercise with the staff, this evaluation has identified some limitations (besides strengths, opportunities and threats) that hinder progress of the project. This includes difficult road communication, language communication, lack of literacy skills, particularly among some TBAs, inadequate training of staff, lack of health materials and inadequate staff (7) for the project. This report has discussed possible solutions to some of these problems but it is for the management of BNKS to agree on a most effective and practicable way out through a collective review of the situation. We have suggested BNKS to develop a feasible and efficient “Geographic Strategy” so that, without compromising the principle of reaching the most disadvantaged in the most remote locations, the organisation might redistribute and re-arrange its working locations and revise the current staff deployment approach by that. Bandarban Sadar being located in the northern end of the district, operational management in the southern end, about a hundred miles away, poses a big challenge. This might call for a decentralisation initiative with a decision to set up a regional hub in the south with an increased number of staff based, e.g. in Thanchi, rather than in the current head-office.

5.4 A review of the operational approach for the field areas is also urgently needed in order to mitigate the problem of alleged irregular visits to village groups. Continuity and intensity of engagement is very important in projects like this that aims to change human behaviour and empowerment of disadvantaged groups of women. The current monthly meeting/visit structure often creates a gap in the learning process when

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problems like bad weather and staff sickness, cause them to skip meetings. This is often quite detrimental to achieving success, because it breaks the important learning chain. The management of the organisation might also review the effectiveness of the current frequency of monthly meetings and consider if it is feasible to increase it to a fortnightly pattern?

5.5 The evaluation team is of the opinion that, in the absence of an effective PME system, not just this project, but BNKS as a whole, is deprived of recording important lessons that its work generates and make decisions based on authentic field data. An effective PME system, (and possibly an MIS as well), is particularly important for BNKS because it is now implementing several projects funded by different donors, each of which has its own separate requirement of a report. Without a system of effective monitoring, useful data from the field would be difficult to receive and thus, producing effective and satisfactory reports would be very difficult. Apart from the donors, it might also be a cause for disappointment for all concerned, including the executive Board, the management, government authorities and even the staff of the organisation, if reports do not capture the true achievements of their work. Therefore BNKS should urgently introduce an effective monitoring and evaluation system.

5.6 In the absence of a good working M&E, the evaluation team looked for alternative sources of information on the project. Reviewing the group registers seemed to have partly served this purpose besides, of course, the detailed FGDs with the members of the groups. If these books were properly maintained in some greater detail, they might have been a very useful source of information for the organisation as well as for the groups themselves. Basically the books show records of meeting attendances and agendas for discussion. Although, the books are also called “resolution book”, we have hardly noted the inclusion of resolutions or decisions in them. We tried to visualise a book with detailed proceedings with very clear decisions made by the groups. Such a book could have been a very useful source of information for monitoring and evaluation for all concerned, not least for the field staff. This can be the basis for staff to follow up on decisions taken by the group in the previous meeting and record any progress made in that respect. We think the staff needs to be trained on how to record the detailed minutes of the meetings in the register books so that they have some useful information in them more than just the list of discussion topics and a list of members present at the meeting.

Figure 11 BNKS office in Ruma

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5.7 The group meetings attended by the evaluation team showed an extremely limited participation of men. Their presence was so insignificant, not just in the numbers but also in terms of demonstrating their interest, or solidarity, with the group objectives. The participation of men In a gender equality programme is important, not just because they are sometimes part of the problem for women in the community, but because they are the ones who generally uphold negative social customs, prejudices and values that are detrimental to the progress or emancipation of women. Those male members of the society who are in a leadership position need to be particularly involved with the work of the group. Without their active cooperation it is very difficult to change gender-related structural inequality. The evaluation team recommends that efforts are undertaken to ensure an enhanced level of participation of men in the programme.

5.8 Although the project has a rights perspective, to the evaluation team it did not come through as a well pronounced aspect of it. We were not able to speak with school girls and boys, and the women in VDGs with whom we spoke were unable to ddemonstrate a comprehensive understanding of this issue. The issue of rights was at best understood only within the confines of reproductive health. As explained by the staff, the women were now aware that men and women (i.e., husband and wife) should jointly decide when to have a baby and how many. In the context of rural Bandarban, the ability of a woman to assert her choice regarding childbearing is no doubt a significant progress but, if it is not explained and understood within the broader human rights frame, the learning is considered incomplete. As the reference groups of the project belong to disadvantaged ethnic minorities, it is all the more important that their general rights awareness is made stronger and comprehensive. We recommend that BNKS emphasises on a stronger rights based approach to its work.

5.9 Since the socio-political, cultural and economic reality of Bandarban is significantly different from the rest of the country, it is often inappropriate to expect a similar type of results from the similar kinds of interventions made elsewhere in the country. In our view, some of the development interventions in Bandarban are not able to effectively meet the specific needs and demands of the disadvantaged people living here because the assumptions for change are often not location specific. A special study to gain a deeper insight into the local problems might be useful in addressing that problem. We may suggest BNKS and Diakonia Bangladesh to consider carrying out an anthropological study for the purpose, with special focus into the roots of, for example, the negative social practices of the indigenous communities and what could possibly make a more acceptable, effective, and durable change.

5.2 BNKS the Organistion

5.1. BNKS has been a well respected NGO in Bandarban for its commitment to work with the most disadvantaged community groups in remote areas of the district where access to public services is very limited. The organisation stands out from other NGOs in Bandarban for its local origin, working solely with the indigenous communities on areas of human rights, women’s empowerment, health and sanitation. It is one of the most renowned female headed local NGO with a strong leadership in the social develop sector. It is a well developed organisation with a very transparent and accountable system of governance and equipped with all the necessary policies and procedures. BNKS has all necessary legal mandates such as registration of NGO Affairs Bureau, D/O Women’s Affairs and so on.

5.10 With a number of projects and a large number of staff, BNKS should now undertake human resource development planning. Although the general skills and ability of the staff appeared positive, the organisation still needs to have a stronger staff capacity particularly in strategic planning, M&E, and Training. Before undertaking a

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decision on this, a review of the gaps and needs should be carefully undertaken. BNKS appeared to have good staff capacity at mid and lower level, but limited at the specialist level. Some of the needs can be filled by fresh recruitment, while the rest should be achieved through training. A continuous process of staff development will be necessary with short and long term objectives so that the staff remain up-to-date with current issues and concepts within their respective fields of work. It is therefore recommended that BNKS adopts a Staff Development initiative following an organisation-wide review of human resource needs.

5.12 BNKS has strong credibility among its stakeholders regarding its management and transparent governance practices. The organisation now needs to further improve its capacity for developing new project concepts and approaches in order to maintain its leadership position in the region. The work in Bandarban by BNKS with about ten different ethnic communities cannot be matched by any other NGO in the country. It therefore allows the organisation to develop and consolidate its position by producing research or policy briefs to highlight its particular learning from here. Since the major focus of BNKS is on gender, health and human rights of the disadvantaged people, it needs to further build capacity in these few areas rather than try to spread itself thinly among many other themes and sectors of work.

5.13 The organisation has a set of useful policy documents (although a couple of them are undated) which now gives BNKS a stronger position as its operations are guided by these well prepared instruments. We shall recommend that in order to make these as living documents with dynamic directions, their relevance and effectiveness should be continuously reviewed and updated to reflect the changing needs and time.

Figure 12 Colleagues in evaluation

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ANNEXURES

Annex 1: Field Visit Schedule

Visit Schedule to BNKS, 19-23 September, 2014

Date/Time Purpose and Activities Name of Place Responsibility/People met

19/09/2014 09 pm

Arrival of Evaluation team Night in Bandarban hotel Kya Sweting, PM met M. Taher and Mahbubul Islam

20 September 2014

9.00 - 10 am

Informal Introduction between Evaluation team and BNKS staff

Welcomed at BNKS Head Office at Ujanipara, Bandarban

Ms. Hla Shing Nue, the ED and senior staff, including Program Director, Mr. Peshal Chakma

10-11 a.m. Presentation on Evaluation Objectives and Process.

BNKS head office Sung Thwe Prue (Daisy), Taher, and Mahbubul Islam

11-12 a.m. Presentation on BNKS and SRHR project

BNKS head office Mr. Peshal Chakma, Mr. Kya Swe Hla Sweting of SRHR

12-01 p.m. SWOT Analysis in Small Groups; Feedback/discussion

BNKS head office All BNKS Staff present. Facilitated by Evaluation team

03- 04.30 pm

Visit Meeting Uji headman para projonon shastho group.

Uji headman para, UNICEF school.

25 members from Lulain and Uji Headman para groups.

04.30 pm to 7.00 pm

Bandarban to boli para, Thanchi BNKS, Boli para Clinic and site office

Ms. May Prue Ching, FO and Lalpar Bawm, Paramedic.

21 September 2014

09. 00 to 12.30 pm

Field visit by boat to Haliram Tripura para

Mr. Nirmal Tripura’s (President) house.

Ms. Hastima, karbari Hanarang Tripura, Ms. Foderung Tripura,

01.00 to 02.00 pm

Visit to and Meeting with Hoyton khumi para projonon shastho adhikar group.

karbari Lufra khumi’s house, Hoyton khumi para

President & karbari Lufra khumi, Mid-wife hoypa khumi, May prue, Lalpar accompanied

02-03 pm Luch at Bolipara office of BNKS Bolipara site office BNKS staff and evaluation team

03-06 pm Travel to Ruma from Thanchi Night s at Hotel in Ruma Evaluation team, BNKS staff

22 September 2014

09.00-11.00 am

Meeting with Eden para projonon shastho adhikar (SRHR) group

Aden Para, house of Saptom Bawm karbari

Saptom Karbari, President, BNKS FO Lal piyan kim Bawm

11.00-12.00 pm

Visit to Upazila Chairman’s office & BNKS Ruma office

Meeting with Mr. Aung Thowai Ching Chairman

Evaluation Team and BNKS staff

12-02 pm Return to Bandarban by road Ruma to Bandarban Evaluation Team/BNKS staff

02.04.00 pm

Lunch and Preparation for feedback presentation to BNKS

BNKS head office Evaluation Team

04.00 – 06.pm

Wrap up meeting with Feed-back presentation on preliminary findings and discussion with BNKS staff

BNKS head office All senior staff, ED, Members of BNKS Board, CSO group, and UP Chair Mr. Kyaw Shing Shwe

10 pm Return to Chittagong/Dhaka Bandarban-Dhaka Evaluation Team

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Annex 2: SWOT analysis

SWOT of the Programme on SRHR

Strength Weakness

Effective Management Committee

Qualified project staff

We have good project module

We have trained TBAs

Organised groups on reproductive health

Groups of Adolescent boys and girls

Constituency among adolescent boys and girls students in 3 schools;

Difficult communication link with different project sites

Limitations of language communication

Low rate of education and literacy among the reference groups;

Lack of training opportunities in different subjects;

Inadequate supply of training and health materials

Lack of interest among the men on SRHR;

Limited number of staff

Opportunity Threats

Training for TBAs

TBA Materials

Cooperation of public health service

Work with all advasi groups

Good rapport with donors

Natural Disaster

Political unrest

Superstition

Local elites

SWOT of the Orgnisation

Strength Weakness

Trained manpower

Having policies on gender, HR etc.

Own office

Experience of 20 years in development;

Legal status

Assets

Donor driven projects

Lack of specialists staff

No income or revenue generation source of its own

Opportunity Threats

Working with diversity

Networking

Cultural diversity

Female headed organisation

Political unrest in the country

Natural Disasters

Geographic existence

Restrictions from administrative authority (

Nepotism

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Annex 3: List of literature reviewed

Financial Management Manual, 1st Edition, February 2012

Draft Gender Policy, 2012

Staff Management Procedure, 2013

Open Information Policy (undated)

Complaints and Response Policy

Accountability Framework

Children’s Protection Policy (undated, but effective from April 2013)

Mid Term Evaluation Report for ActionAid Bangladesh, July 2012

Project Proposal for Strengthening Reproductive Health, Jan, 2012

Baseline Survey Report for SRHR project (undated)

Annual Narrative Report (Jan-Dec 2013)

Annual Report 2012

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Annex 3: Terms of Reference

Bolipara Nari Kalyan Somity (BNKS), Bandarban, Bangladesh

TERMS OF REFERENCE

For Evaluation of the Project:

“Strengthening Reproductive Health Rights of Ethnic Minorities in Bandarban”

1. PURPOSE

1.1. Evaluate whether the interventions are on track and are likely to reach their objectives through assessing the effectiveness, impact, relevance, sustainability and efficiency

1.2. Highlight good examples, practices, if any, within the projects 1.3. Where applicable recommend to improve the design and implementation of the

interventions 1.4. Assess to what extent the projects are making effective contribution to the present

results according to current Strategy Plan for Diakonia 1.5. Recommendations regarding continuation/phase out of the evaluated projects

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 The major thematic area of this project is gender equality and human rights.

3. RECIPIENT

The recipient of the evaluations is BNKS and Diakonia Bangladesh

The evaluation, once completed, will be shared with other relevant stakeholders as necessary

4. SCOPE OF WORK

The evaluation will assess the progress over the past years considering projects’ effectiveness, relevance, impact and efficiency, following the criteria as below:

4.1. Effectiveness: Has the intervention achieved its objectives or achievable using the current design?

To what extent have the agreed objectives been achieved?

Are the successfully achieved activities sufficient to realize the agreed outputs?

What are the reasons for the achievement or non-achievement of outputs or outcomes?

What could be done to make the interventions more effective?

4.2. Relevance: are the interventions consistent with the needs and priorities of the rights holders and polices of BNKS and Diakonia.

Are the objectives in line with needs, priorities of rights holders and problem analysis?

Do the interventions have potential for replication and/or expansion

4.3. Impact: what are the overall effects of the intervention, intended and unintended, long term and short term, positive and negative?

How the interventions affected the well-being of different groups of stakeholders?

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What would have happened without the interventions?

What are the positive and negative effects?

Do the positive effects outweigh the negative ones?

What do the rights holders and other stakeholders perceive to be the effects of the intervention on themselves?

To what extend does the intervention contribute to capacity development and the strengthening of institutions?

4.4. Sustainability: will the benefits produced by the interventions be maintained after withdrawal of project support.

To what extent does the positive impact justify continued investments?

Did stakeholders participate in the planning and implementation of the intervention to ensure local engagement?

Do relevant partners possess sufficiently strong governance structures and professional capacity to sustain the activities?

Is the technology utilized appropriate to the economic, social and cultural conditions of the country?

Are the interventions harmful to the environment?

4.5. Efficiency: can the costs of the interventions be justified by the results?

What measures have been taken during the planning and implementation phase to ensure that resources are efficiently used?

To what extent have the development components been delivered as agreed?

Could the intervention have been done better, more cheaply or quickly?

Could an altogether different type of intervention have solved the same problem at a lower cost?

5. STAKEHOLDER

The work will be carried out in a transparent manner in consultation with the people relevant to the interventions.

This should include BNKS staffs, key personnel of Diakonia, stakeholders, rights holders and other designated persons as appropriate;

There should be active participation from relevant implementing partner organization;

It is essential that the evaluation is designed to enable target groups to constructively participate in the evaluation process;

6. METHODOLOGY

The evaluation is expected to adopt a methodology that has the following elements: Desk study, field visits, focus group discussions, interviews (with individuals/groups) as required by the terms of this assignment and the work plan.

7. WORK AND TIME SCHEDULE

BNKS will receive a work plan prepared by the consultant, based on the present terms of reference and a proposed time frame to carry out the tasks.

The length of the consultancy should be within five-six weeks.

The preferred deadline for submitting the draft evaluation report is end of October 2014 or according to the agreed work plan of the evaluator;

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The deadline for submitting the report will be stipulated in the contract signed between the consultant and BNKS according to agreed work plan.

8. EVALUATOR

The assignment will be carried out by a team/group of external evaluators who have:

knowledge of local context

experience of project evaluations, relevant issues and methods;

gender sensitive and possess knowledge of gender equality issues;

proficiency in Bengali and English languages.

9. REPORTING AND DELIVERABLES

Draft reports should be presented within a reasonable time for feedback from Diakonia and BNKS

Final report:

One evaluation report based on the project

One summarized report for Diakonia and BNKS based on key observations and recommendations

Printed and digital copies of the reports should be presented to BNKS.

10. OWNERSHIP AND CONFIDENTIALITY

The Consultants should respect the confidential nature of all information acquired during this consultancy with BNKS and Diakonia. BNKS and Diakonia are the sole copyright owners of the products stemming from this consultancy.

11. FORM OF PAYMENT

BNKS will pay the consultant, upon certification that the services have been satisfactorily delivered, no later than 15 working days after the submission of the reports.

12. ATTACHED

Project Proposal and related reports and documents;

All relevant reports and documents on BNKS.