Research Reports (2003): Social Studies, Vol – XXXII

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10361/13451

Browse

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5

Indirect technique for estimating life expectancy from limited data set of BRAC female members
(BRAC Research and Evaluation Division (RED), 2003-12) Gani, Md. Showkat; Chowdhury, AMR
This paper aims to construct the complete life table (L T) from limited data set of the female members of BRAC village organizations (VO) using the INDEPTH (International Network for the continuous Demographic Evaluation of Population and Their Health in developing countries) model life tables (MLT), and to justify the validity of the estimated results. The ML T technique was used to estimate the life expectancy of BRAC VO members because the data were available for women ranging from 18 - 55 years only. As a service to VO members, BRAC provides them insurance coverage against death. Secondary data set of BRAC female VO members was collected from the MIS of BRAC area level offices (sub-district level) and the insurance claims formed the main sources of data for this study. With a sample size of 186,379 women including 391 dead, the sampling design used was as follows: 12 of 45 BRAC district-level regions were randomly selected and 32 areas were again randomly selected from the selected regions. Using the INDEPTH ML T, a complete life table of BRAC female members was generated. The pattern of life expectancy curve of BRAC female VO members is similar to both the Matlab (a sub-district) and the national female population of Bangladesh. The closeness of life expectancy curves indicates that the technique used provided valid estimates. The life expectancy at birth of BRAC female members was estimated at 64 years in 1998, which was higher compared to national female population (61 years). The higher life expectancy among BRAC VO female members indicates that BRAC development interventions can be a catalytic agent in increasing the life expectancy among poor women in rural Bangladesh. Therefore, this demographic technique could be used for the indirect estimation of life table in developing countries of Asia and Africa.
Publlc service delivery in education: the BRAC experience
(BRAC Research and Evaluation Division (RED), 2003-05) Ahmed, Salehuddin; Nath, Samir Ranjan
BRAC, a non-governmental development organisation in Bangladesh, has been working for the socio-economic advancement of the poor, especially the women and children. It has long experience in providing basic public health services, enhancing income earning activities, and extending education. Complementary to the State initiatives, alternative public service delivery systems became relevant in many countries. This paper explores BRAC experiences in providing basic and primary educational services to the poorer section of the community. Starting with a functional literacy programme for the adult people how BRAC turned into a quality primary education provider for the children and adolescents was explored in this article. Activities on other components like continuing education, adolescent development and secondary education are also discussed. It also showed how BRAC's countrywide network, research, monitoring, accounts and audit departments - which in general are not considered as educational activities - played important roles in making the education programme grounded and expanded. Lessons learn from this experience are also summarized.
Gender and good governance issues in local government of Bangladesh: a baseline report
(BRAC Research and Evaluation Division (RED), 2003-12) Gani, Md. Showkat; Sattar, M. Ghulam
The study mainly describes the pre-intervention situation of women leadership capacity in local government system of Bangladesh. Data came from the 16 upazilas (sub-district) of 4 districts in Khulna division, where the Gender and Good Governance Programme was in operation. A total of 434 women union parishad (UP) members were interviewed in February-March 2003. Findings reveal that the typical women UP member is someone who is around 35 years old, has secondary or ssc level education, mainly working as homemakers. Thus, the typical elected women UP member do not have much history of formal involvement in activities pertaining to the public domain. Subsequently, it is thus not surprising that they had weak participation in many public activities, such as, infrastructural development, relief and rehabilitation activities, women and child development, communication and linkage with others. On the other hand, they were very active in setting up hygienic toilet, plantation, arsenic awareness creation, attendance of the social justice, and finally the relationship with elites. However, the weakest involvement of women UP members has been in formal committees through which resources are allocated and decisions are made. The observed significant positive association of involvement in developmental activities of women UP members with their age and economic condition indicates that there may have been inadequate opportunity for young women from poorer background to participate and influence developmental work.
Assessment of the skill training programme for employment of retrenched female garment workers
(BRAC Research and Evaluation Division (RED), 2003-03) Gani, Md. Showkat
This study assessed the effectiveness of skill training programme of BRAC for re-employment of retrenched female garment workers (RFGW). Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 20 purposively selected RFGWs and the review of project records. Findings revealed that almost all women found the overall skill training programme very good and effective. The skill training would be more useful if preference is given to the RFGWs for choosing the training type, and the curriculum of the training could be similar. The duration of the 12 days training may be expanded by a few days and the small business trading module may need to be redesigned or cut down from the training programme. BRAC could play a significant role in marketing the goods produced by the RFGWs. Microcredit services were useful for the trained workers who were self-employed in any kind of economic activity. This study concludes that the skill training programme can be suitably linked with BRAC development activities in raising the employment opportunities for the RFGWs.
An assessment of male attitude towards violence against women
(BRAC Research and Evaluation Division (RED), 2003-05) Rafi, Mohammad; Banu, Dilruba; Alim, Md. Abdul; Akter, Shaheen
Violence against women is a global burden. In violence against women wives, mothers and daughters are battered, raped, verbally abused, neglected, deprived of human dignity and means to meet their basic needs. The cost of violence is not only monetary but also emotional and social. Violence against women is a human rights issue. It is deeply rooted in culture and religion; supported and in many cases, even institutionalized by patriarchal societies. Enormous cost or violence along with the fact that it is man made problem justifies any effort in reducing violence against women. The recognition of the fact that violence against women is unjust and prevention of such violence is a precondition to development arc the impetuses in taking initiatives in preventing violence against women in our society. As a first step to such an initiative the study was initiated. The main objective of this study was to understand the psychosocial dimensions of the attitudes of men towards violence against women. Under this broad theme the study focused on several issues: analyze pattern of violence; assess men's attitude towards women in general. and their attitude towards violence against women in particular; and find out what it would take to stop violent behavior of men towards women. The study revolves around two important concepts, i.e .. male violence against women and their attitude towards it. Violence against women results in. or is likely to result in, physical, sexual and psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life. This definition refers to four types of violence - psychological and physical assaults, and violence related to action and deprivation. Attitude refers to beliefs and feelings about a person or event and the resulting support or opposition to those. Taken together, favorable or unfavorable reactions - whether exhibited in beliefs, fee lings, or inclinations to act - define a person's attitude towards something.

Browse

Recent Submissions