Minister pledges RMG pay hike

Dhaka report
Labour minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain says readymade garment workers will get their remuneration under new salary structure within three months and asked them to calm down. He said a new wage board will be formed with necessary reforms to the salary structure. The announcement came in the wake of the recent worker unrests taking place in Dhaka, Gazipur and Narayanganj over the last couple of days demanding pay rise. The minister also admitted that the existing wage structure is not compatible with the current situation. The minimum wage of a RMG worker, set three years back, is TK 1,664. Mosharraf was presiding over a meeting on 'Crisis Management Cell'—formed to resolve complications and unrest in the RMG sector—at his office on Wednesday. State minister for labour Monnujan Sufian, home secretary Abdus Sobhan Sikdar, acting labour secretary Nurul Haque, BGMEA's acting president Nasir Uddin Chowdhury and an apparel factory owner Anisul Haque Sinha, , among others, attended the meeting. "The minimum wage is in no way well-suited with the current situation," the minister told reporters. "It must be consistent with the price of daily essentials and inflation rate." He said the workers would get wage under the new salary structure before Ramadan. "The new wage board will finalise the salary structure by three months. The ministry will then announce it after having the proposal from the board and will implement it," the minister added. Mosharraf urged the workers to not get instigated by any quarters and said 'a certain political cluster' was trying to create trouble cashing in on the workers' dissatisfaction. "Measures will be taken against those masterminds," he said without elaborating. "And strict steps will be launched against the workers too, if needed," he added. BGMEA leader Nasir said the workers were not the rivals of the owners. "So the owners accepted the new board within the span of three years." Urging the workers to refrain from destructive work, Nasir said the destruction of the factories will also affect the workers as well as the owners. He asked for stern actions if there is more unrest even after announcement of reforms to the salary
structure.


Jatrabari-Gulistan flyover work begins Tuesday

Dhaka report
-The construction work of the long awaited Jatrabari-Gulistan Flyover is set to begin on Tuesday under the country's first ever Public-Private Partnership project. Prime minister Sheikh Hasina is likely to inaugurate the construction work at 10 am at Golapbagh Ground on Tuesday. Bangladeshi investment firm Orion Group's associate body Belhasa Accom & Associates Limited is constructing the flyover through 'Build Own Operate and Transfer' (BOOT) system under completely private investment project. Belhasa Accom authority said the project – a wonder of latest technology and architecture-- is the first of its kind in Bangladesh. The four-lane flyover will span nearly nine kilometres with seven entrances and seven exits along with 13 ramps, it said The flyover is to be constructed in three years at an estimated cost of Tk 1350 crore. The amount would come from private investors through a consortium of local banks and financial institutions, which include Sonali Bank, Agrani Bank, Janata Bank and few others On top of that investment will come from the country's capital market, Belhasa official Chowdhury Masud said The flyover will connect Dhania on Dhaka-Chittagong Highway to the capital's Palashi's Shaheed Zahir Raihan Road through Jatrabari, Sayedabad, Gulistan, Bangabandhu Avenue and Fulbaria. It will cover Azimpur and Mirpur Road on the west, Matuail and Demra on the east and Katchpur and Buriganga bridges on the south and the densely populated area in the north. After completion of the flyover, communication between Dhaka metropolitan and at least 30 districts including port city Chittagong, Mongla, Sylhet and Barisal will be improved, Masud said


Untreated prostate cancer no death sentence


Dhaka report
Even without treatment, only a small minority of men diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer die from the disease, Swedish researchers reported Friday. Drawing from a national cancer register, they estimated that after 10 years prostate cancer would have killed less than three percent of these men. "What the data is showing is that for most patients with low-risk cancer, there is no need to panic," said Grace Lu-Yao, a cancer researcher who was not involved in the new study. "Prostate cancer really is no longer a fatal disease." With modern screening tests, said Lu-Yao, of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in New Brunswick, many prostate cancers are found that might never have developed into serious disease. In such cases, the slight reduction of risk by surgically removing the prostate or treating it with radiation may not outweigh the substantial side effects of these treatments. In the Swedish study, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, researchers compared deaths among more than 6,800 men with prostate cancer who underwent treatment -- surgery or radiation -- or were simply monitored regularly by their doctors, the so-called "watchful waiting" approach. With watchful waiting, patients are only treated if their cancer progresses. The men, who were younger than 70, had low- or intermediate-risk cancers, as judged by several factors, including blood levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and Gleason score, a measure of abnormal cells in the prostate. After about eight years, 20 percent of the men in the watchful waiting group had died, almost twice as many as in the treatment group. However, the number of deaths was no different than what would be expected in the general population. Less than three percent had actually died from prostate cancer, and those who weren't treated turned out also to be sicker in the first place. The researchers calculated that of those men with low-risk cancer, 2.4 percent would die from the disease within 10 years without treatment. While this number was about three times higher than in men who had had surgery or radiation therapy, it wasn't clear how much of the difference was due to worse general health in the men who didn't get treatment. The Swedish findings jibe with earlier results, including a large US study. Given the overall low death risk, the researchers said watchful waiting "appears to be suitable" for many men with low-risk prostate cancer. Instead of panicking, Lu-Yao said, men diagnosed with this type of cancer should see it as "a wake-up call, an opportunity to improve their health," for instance by exercising more and eating a more healthy diet. That, she said, was much more likely to influence their chances of living a long life.



Ashulia RMG units shut from Tuesday


Dhaka report
Garment factory owners' association has decided to close down all units in Ashulia from Tuesday for an indefinite period. The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association decided in an emergency meeting with the Ashulia factory owners on Monday that the units would remain closed for security reasons and due to 'illegal strikes'. The Ashulia factory owners have been suffering from insecurity due to the recent unrest among workers demanding a minimum wage of Tk 5,000 per month. Abdus Salam Murshedy, BGMEA president told bdnews24.com that the factory owners had taken the decision in light of the prevailing situation and the apprehension of the owners. The closure is set to continue till the situation improves, he added. The minimum wage of a RMG worker, set three years ago, is Tk 1,662.50. The apex business body at a press release also stated that the decision was to be implemented according to Section 13 (1) of Bangladesh Labour Law 2006. Monday's meeting said referred to the wildcat workers' strike as 'illegal' and said that insecurity was the main reason behind the sudden decision. More than 300 factories have remained closed down at Narasinghapur, Jamgora, Nishchintapur, Beron and Palli Bidyut areas fearing more violence at Ashulia where over 100 garment workers were injured in the day-long clashes between workers and the police. Earlier on Apr 28 labour minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, following repeated unrest of
garment workers, had pledged that their wages would be reviewed upwards within three months. Admitting that the existing wage did not correspond with the market situation, he declared that a new wage board would be formed with necessary reforms to the salary structure.

HRC NEWS

Joe's Weekly Message

DearMizan,

This Sunday is the centennial celebration of Father's Day in theUnited States. This year, like one century ago, America's fathers willbe treated to a special day and hear a much-deserved "thankyou" from their children and spouses. That never changes becauselove doesn't change.So much about the families we're celebrating is different now. Mostobviously for the LGBT community, Father's Day was once the exclusivedomain of different-sex headed households. It would be many decadesbefore same-sex couples could realize their dreams of parenthood andfamily, with all of the everyday joys that Father's Day celebrates.Now, same-sex couples are raising millions of children in nearly everycounty in this nation, but until recently, no laws recognized ourrelationships or protected our children in the event of unforeseentragedy. From the first civil union law in Vermont and the Goodridgemarriage case to today, governments are increasingly honoring ourfamilies' rights and recognizing the need to protect our spouse's andchildren's interests.HRC's Corporate Equality Index shows skyrocketing support for same-sexcouple headed families, with equal family benefits now the norm amongFortune 500 companies. Many states provide equal benefits to thefamilies of public employees. The federal government is starting tofollow suit thanks to the presidential memoranda on benefits, and thepresident favors complete equality for federal workers' families.And yet the work is far from over. This week the constitutionalchallenge to California's Proposition 8 was before a federal trialcourt. As these battles so often do, this challenge puts our fitnessas parents on trial. The pro-equality advocates have science and childwelfare on their side, but the fact is that even though we are equal
parents, Proposition 8 has forced us to prove it. To the millions ofchildren we are raising across this country, our fitness has beenproven already, but we alone are forced to defend it.In Hawaii, fair-minded legislators passed a civil union bill that isbefore the Governor for signature. Although nationally, the businesscommunity has led the way in treating same-sex couples equally, theHawaii Business Roundtable, without its members consent, sent a letterto the governor on June 4th urging her not to sign the bill. Thisweek, a number of HBR members, at HRC's request, disavowed the letter.The action of these companies is not only the right thing to do,experience shows that it makes good business sense.We have gotten to this centennial Father's Day thanks to the hard workof many people-pioneering families who were among the first toraise children in their communities; lawyers and their braveplaintiffs who dared to seek equal justice for our families; peoplewho campaigned for equal justice and those who fought againstdiscrimination; employers who saw us as families before our statesdid. But at its core, Father's Day is about fathers.It's about the gay, bisexual, and transgender dads who make it to theevening PTA meetings and then tuck their kids in at night. It's thestraight dads of LGBT kids who are knocking down the barriers to theirchildren's education. It's every father who models good citizenship tohis children, so that they can go out into the world and be decent andfair-minded friends, neighbors and voters. To all of you, happyFather's Day.Sincerely,Joe SolmonesePresident, Human Rights Campaign

The World Cup and lessons from South Africa’s transition

Who would have thought that rugby could change the world? Two decades ago the apartheid regime in South Africa was brought down by a range of pressures. But the clincher for many South Africans was being ostracized from rugby and other global sporting competitions.
As South Africa prepares to open the 2010 World Cup, the country's passion for sport is offering an equally powerful way of celebrating its full membership in the international community.
With the national team about to square off against Mexico in the first of this year's matches, I am thinking as much about the drama of penalty shoot-outs and the like as lessons of peaceful transition.
When I was in Cape Town a couple of months ago I visited the city’s brand new football stadium which is squeezed between an up-scale residential neighborhood and the Atlantic Ocean. It is a pretty amazing structure. I also visited one of the gritty townships in the Cape Flats area north of the city. It was hard to believe I was in the same country.
The peace process that produced the country’s first one-man one-vote elections in 1994 unleashed a wave of optimism that reverberated around the world. It took with it the systemic divisions of the apartheid era but South Africa’s trajectory over the intervening years shows how difficult it is to put divisions and violence of the past behind and start over.
When I was a student I could not imagine apartheid would ever be history or that Nelson Mandela would eventually walk free. But it has come to pass and although there are some dark clouds, the country’s accomplishments offer some telling pointers to other societies making the difficult passage from violent conflict to the kind of big tent democracy that holds promise for the future.
South Africa is particularly well known for some innovative organizational forms used during the transition. The hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) offered wrenching testimony to the horrors of the past and society’s determination to turn the page. They provided a model that has been exported, not always with the same success, to other troubled corners of the world.
The changes were cemented by the extraordinary vision of Nelson Mandela as the country’s first president. The magnanimous style of leadership he made his own was central in pulling the nation together after years of struggle and injustice. His iconic stature on the global stage was matched by the pre-eminent economic and political role the country rapidly assumed on the African continent, boosting South Africans’ sense of national destiny and self-worth. His leadership helped create resilience to the stresses that often drive countries back into conflict.
For many commentators, however, the sheen is off what was once seen as the South African miracle. The crime rate is high and the middle and upper classes rely on sophisticated security systems for their safety. Individual rights are enshrined in the constitution but relations between races are strained. The rich of all colors live well but the travails of the underclass is brought home by the huge slums that surround the country’s main cities. I was also struck by a sight I had not expected—white panhandlers on the streets of Cape Town.
At the macro-level, corruption, unemployment, criminality, and economic inequality are all extremely high. This is ominous because they are indicators that generally correlate closely with state-threatening violence.
Looking back, some people involved in the peace negotiations recognize they made mistakes. They put too little emphasis on the task of getting young people into jobs. The very necessary debate on racism, inequality and social marginalization never really happened. Not enough attention was paid to reforming local government which is responsible for providing many basic services. And although civil society is active in many parts of the country, it could have done more to deepen democratization and accountability under the new constitution.
There were plenty of missed opportunities. Had they been seized, the speed and direction of change in South Africa might have been very different.
Amidst the cheers at the World Cup kick-off on Friday we should not forget the sheer power of sport in South Africa’s history. Perhaps it will provide an opportunity to revisit some unfinished business. If there is one thing we’ve learned from South Africa’s history, it’s that a beautiful game can change the world.

Climate Change & the World Bank

Context
Strategy
Results
Context
Climate change is expected to hit developing countries the hardest. Its effects—higher temperatures, changes in precipitation patterns, rising sea levels, and more frequent weather-related disasters—pose risks for agriculture, food, and water supplies. At stake are recent gains in the fight against poverty, hunger and disease, and the lives and livelihoods of billions of people in developing countries.
Tackling this immense challenge must involve both mitigation—to avoid the unmanageable—and adaptation—to manage the unavoidable—all while maintaining a focus on its social dimensions.
Strategy
Addressing climate change requires unprecedented global cooperation across borders. The World Bank Group is helping support developing countries and contributing to a global solution, while tailoring our approach to the differing needs of developing country partners. We are strengthening and building climate change partnerships with our member governments and a wide array of organizations.
In 2005, the Group of Eight asked the World Bank to develop a plan for more investments in clean energy in the developing world, in cooperation with other international financial institutions. The resulting Clean Energy Investment Framework identified the scale of investment needed for countries to access energy, especially in Africa; to help their transition to a lower carbon development path; and to adapt to climate variability and change.
At the request of our Development Committee in 2007, the Bank Group embarked on a comprehensive strategy to help address climate challenges and launched extensive global consultations. The consultations concluded in September 2008. The resulting strategic framework on development and climate change takes a demand-based approach to identifying and tapping new business opportunities for developing countries and helping them cope with new risks.
We aim to support development successes while offsetting costs that stem from climate change through climate-dedicated finance. Our strategy also highlights the need for action and interaction among all countries for the greater global good. In developing countries, we are working to:
Support climate actions in country-led development processes;
Mobilize additional concessional and innovative finance;
Facilitate the development of market-based financing mechanisms;
Leverage private sector resources;
Support accelerated development and deployment of new technologies; and
Step up policy research, knowledge, and capacity building.
Results
Climate vulnerability and risk management increasingly is part of our dialogue and work with developing countries. Key sectors affected by climate change include health, water supply and sanitation, energy, transport, industry, mining, construction, trade, tourism, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, environmental protection, and disaster management.
The World Bank Group has several projects underway to strengthen the knowledge base for climate change and to translate such insights into informed decision making. The 2010 edition of the World Development Report focuses on development in a changing climate. Climate change adaptation considerations are being integrated into Country Assistance Strategies. A new screening tool that gives us a simple way of assessing development projects for potential sensitivities to climate change and further work is being done on sector-specific tools and guidance, We are also piloting innovative climate risk insurance. The Global Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery, which helps countries integrate disaster planning into their development strategies, is including long-term climate risk with the programs.
We are taking action on key issues:
IFC, MIGA, and all World Bank regions have developed climate change strategies or/and business plans;
Climate change issues are being integrated into new sector strategies under preparation;
Over 60 percent of all new Country Assistance or Country Partnership Strategies in fiscal year 2009 substantively addressed climate-related issues;
A growing range of activities and instruments to support climate resilient development and adaptation
Continued growth in energy efficiency and renewable energy financing;
Significant progress with new and innovative financing such as the Climate Investment Funds, the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, climate risk management products, and “Green Bonds”;
Rapid build-up in research & knowledge: The 2010 World Development Report on Development and Climate Change was launched on September 15, 2009. The global study on the Economics of Adaptation to Climate Change expected to be launched this fall. Several regional and sectoral flagship reports that address climate change issues were recently completed;
Knowledge dissemination for key emerging technologies, such as Concentrated Solar Power and Smart Grids; and
Low carbon country case studies designed to explore options for lower carbon development. They have been prepared for Mexico, are in final review stages for Brazil and India, and are underway for South Africa, Indonesia, and Poland.
We are committed to sharing our research as well as measuring results and applying lessons from our projects and partnerships. We are also helping young people become champions on key issues of climate change.

Press Release
“Win-Win Strategy” for Yemen’s Agro-Biodiversity and Climate Adaptation
Contacts:In Washington: Hafed Al-Ghwell: (202) 473-8930, halghwell@worldbank.org In Sana’a: Samra Shaibani (967-1) 413 710, sshaibani@worldbank.org WASHINGTON, May 27, 2010 – The Agro-biodiversity and Climate Adaptation project will be implemented in Yemen with over US$5.0 million extending over four years, including a US$4.0 million grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which will be administered by the World Bank. The project aims to enhance capacity and awareness at key national agencies and at local levels, to respond to climate variability and change and to better equip local communities to cope with climate change through the conservation and use of agro-biodiversity. The project will encourage water harvesting and increasing irrigation efficiency as part of a climate-resilient “win-win strategy”. It will also include climate considerations in the identification and improvement of some select landraces to test for drought and heat tolerance. The main components of the Project will be to build on traditional knowledge of farmers and develop an inventory of local agro-biodiversity; to raise awareness on climatic changes and develop initial local predictive capacity of weather patterns and long-term climate change scenarios for the country, to develop climate resilient rain-fed agriculture strategy, and put in place project management, coordination, monitoring and evaluation systems. The World Bank Group has a long-term involvement in the agriculture sector in Yemen. “IDA has been supporting the development of the agriculture sector in Yemen for over three decades. Past portfolio included projects in agricultural research and extension, as well as productivity improvement”, said Benson Ateng, World Bank Yemen Country Manager. “Recent IDA projects have focused on groundwater and soil conservation, irrigation improvement, and on rainfed agriculture and livestock,” he added. The Government's rural development and agricultural development strategies not only stress the importance of agriculture as the driving force for development in the rainfed highlands of Yemen, but also the need to take advantage of local agro-biodiversity and local knowledge to prevent further land degradation and to help farmers adapt to climate change. The new project addresses one of the current Country Assistance Strategy’s objectives, namely, to ‘help manage natural resources scarcity and natural risks’ and thematic areas which is meant to mitigate the impact of natural disasters and invest in climate change adaptation as well as to support selected drivers of non-oil growth, in particular, increasing agricultural productivity in rainfed areas. “Rainfed agriculture is the primary means of livelihood and a safety net for a majority of the rural poor in Yemeni highlands, and it is critical that these communities learn to cope with climate change through win-win strategies and diversify their incomes through the use of the rich agro-biodiversity in the highlands”, commented Kanta K. Rigaud, World Bank Task Team Leader. Agriculture development in the past has largely focused on irrigated areas. However, more than half of the country’s cultivated land is under rain-fed and subsistence farming conditions. For the nearly 84% of the poor in the rural areas that depend on rain-fed agriculture, it is the primary source of livelihood and food security. For more information please visit:www.worldbank.org/ye


What the World Bank Is Doing

In response to the severity of the food crisis and the need for prompt action, the World Bank Group set up the Global Food Crisis Response Program (GFRP) in May 2008 to provide immediate relief to countries hard hit by high food prices. The Bank response has been articulated in coordination with the United Nations’ High-Level Task Force on food security. Through its response, the Bank is supporting the implementation of the joint Comprehensive Framework for Action (CFA).
· The World Bank Group increased GFRP to $2 billion in April 2009 to provide immediate relief to countries hard hit by high food prices. GFRP was created in May 2008 to reduce the threat high food prices and rising agricultural production and marketing costs pose to the livelihoods of the world’s poor. The money is used to feed poor children and other vulnerable groups, provide for nutritional supplements to pregnant women, lactating mothers, infants and small children, to meet additional expenses of food imports or to buy seeds for the new season.
GFRP has approved $1,170.4 million out of $1,190.4 million in 35 countries as of April 8, 2010. An additional $20 million is being earmarked for programs in two countries. $884 million out of the $1,170.4 million in Board-approved Bank-funded GFRP projects has been disbursed (75 percent of Board-approved funds).
Project Status: Global FoodCrisis Response Program

Project Status: Externally Funded Trust Funds

Grant funding has also been made available through several external-funded trust funds in support of the full range of interventions available under the GFRP. A Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) has received contributions of AUD 50 million from the Australian government, €80 million from the government of Spain, 3 billion Korean Won from the Republic of Korea, and CAD 30 million from the government of Canada. The Russian Federation has also allocated $15 million for the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan, through the Russia Food Price Crisis Rapid Response Trust Fund, which became operational in April 2009. The European Commission has allocated has allocated €101 million to support operations in 9 countries. As of April 8, 2010, $121.65 million has been approved under externally funded trust funds — 6 MDTF-funded projects, two Russia FPCR TF-funded operation, and 5 European Union (EU) Food Crisis Rapid Response Facility-financed operations. Total disbursements under externally funded trust funds amount to $28.87 million.
· World Bank investment in agriculture through the regular programs remains a high priority. IBRD/IDA/special-Financing commitments to agriculture and related sectors doubled from FY08 to FY09. New commitments increased to $5.3 billion in FY09, from $2.6 billion in FY08, and from an average of $2.9 billion annually in the baseline years (FY06-08). World Bank Group support is aligned around five focus areas, articulated in Implementing Agriculture for Development: World Bank Group Agriculture Action Plan, FY2010-12 — raising agricultural productivity, linking farmers to markets and strengthening value chains, reducing risk and vulnerability, facilitating agriculture entry and exit and rural nonfarm income, and enhancing environmental sustainability and services.
· In FY09 (ended June 30, 2009), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) invested $2 billion along the agribusiness supply chain to boost agricultural production, increase liquidity in supply chains, improve logistics and distribution, and increase access to credit for small farmers. This represents a 42% increase over FY08. Half of the committed projects representing nearly 30% of the committed volume were in IDA countries. Moreover, FY09 investments in Africa reached $160 million for primary farming, distribution and storage, grain milling, plantation rehabilitation, and trade finance. This represents a 38% growth over FY08. During the first half of FY10, IFC committed $222 million for fertilizer production, agricultural infrastructure, rural finance, and food retail. In addition IFC channeled $506 million for agricultural trade finance.
· Tripling investments in safety nets and other social protection programs in health and education to $12 billion over next two years, as announced in April 2009.
· Establishing Agriculture Finance Support Facility to expand rural finance through a $20 million Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contribution, as announced in June 2009. The Facility will increase access to financial services, such as savings, credit, payments and insurance.
· Working to help countries develop financial market insurance products and risk management strategies to ensure increased capacity to respond to future prices increases, such as weather derivatives and crop insurance.
In September 2008, Malawi became one of the first countries to use the Bank's new weather derivative financial product. Index-based weather derivatives help transfer risks to the financial markets. Payments are triggered by adverse weather events according to pre-specified conditions. At the macro and micro levels, the Bank is supporting weather index insurance initiatives in Bangladesh, Nicaragua, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Jamaica, and Malawi. The Bank and the IFC will soon complete a feasibility study for insuring small-scale maize production in Indonesia.

· Integrating national level agricultural risk management strategies into new country operations and technical assistance programs in Morocco, Malawi, Mozambique, Haiti, Belize, Grenada, Jamaica and Ghana.
· A sourcebook is being prepared to draw lessons from recent and ongoing experiences with weather index insurance in agriculture and to provide guidance to practitioners inside and beyond the World Bank Group. At the policy level, a global study on public interventions in agricultural insurance has recently been finalized. In addition, the IFC has created a Global Index Insurance Facility (GIIF) which, among other things, will support agricultural insurance in developing countries.
· Engaging in policy dialogue with more than 40 countries to help them address the crisis.
· Through the HLTF Secretariat, the Bank is working through existing country-level coordination mechanisms and regional initiatives such as the Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) to identify opportunities and constraints in CFA implementation on the ground.

Mizan Rahman

journalist

Dhaka, Bangladesh

This is my blog. please comments and any news send me.

Mizan Rahman

PM for 6-month maternity leave
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said maternity leave should be increased to six months from the present four months.
“Maternity leave should be increased to six months. I think four months' maternity leave is not enough for the mothers to take best care of their new born babies,” the premier said while speaking at a function at Osmani Memorial auditorium in the capital.
Bangladesh government and Unicef jointly arranged the function marking the Safe Motherhood Day observed on May 28.
A total of 27 health facilities from seven divisions have received best performance awards. The prime minister distributed the awards among the recipients.
On maternity leave, Hasina said her previous government had increased maternity leave to four months.
“Nowadays the mothers usually take one or two babies. So I think if they are given six months leave, it will not hamper anything,” she said.
Justifying her stand for increasing the maternity leave, she said after six months, a baby attains the capacity to take hard foods.
The PM also called for setting up Mothers' Corner and Day-care centres at all government and non-government offices, shopping malls, buses, rail stations and all other public places.
“A working mother, having a new born baby, has to attend office keeping her baby at home. That's why mothers cannot be attentive at office while the baby also does not get the best care of mother,” she said.
On the Mothers' Corner, the PM said mothers must be given an ideal environment for breast-feeding while she stays in office.
Hasina also suggested the young mothers to live in joint families instead of going for single family.
“Unfortunately, young generation are becoming materialistic. They want to get their own single family. But if the young mothers stay in joint family, their children can get better care,” she said.
Drawing attention to gender discrimination in the society, Hasina requested guardians of the families including mother-in-laws, neighbours, husbands and all relatives to be more careful to the expecting women.
Hasina revealed that the government in a fresh move is going to appoint 13,500 community health providers in a bid to provide mothers and children with more quality services.
Besides, 13,500 skilled birth attendants will be created by 2,015 to ensure safe child delivery at home, Hasina revealed.
Moreover, the government is giving 6 months' training to women field health workers on midwifery activities, she said.
Apart from the field workers, senior family members like grandmothers and aunts can be given training on midwifery, she added.
“If we can train the grandmothers, then pressure on the field workers will be reduced,” the premier said.
The premier also said the present government is strongly committed to providing all citizens of the country with modern and quality health services.
She said the government is working with an aim of reducing maternal mortality rate to 1.5 percent from the present rate of 3.8 percent by the year 2021.
Hasina said the last Awami League government had taken steps to set up one community health clinic for each 6,000 persons and 10,723 clinics were established under the project.
But the next BNP-Jamaat government had dropped the project. “However, we again have started giving services at 9,722 community health clinics,” she said.
Health Secretary Sheikh Altaf Ali presided over the function while Health Minister A F M Ruhal Haque and State Minister for Health Affairs Captain (retd) Mojibar Rahman Fakir, among others, addressed in the meeting.


Telecom law amendment bill placed
A bill was placed in parliament yesterday for amending the telecommunication law with a provision of stern action against individuals using telecom or radio apparatus for malicious purposes.
An individual could face imprisonment of up to five years, or a maximum fine of Tk 300 crore or both for "activities against national harmony, public security and friendly relations with neighbouring countries" through use of telecom or radio apparatus, said the bill.
If any posting or exchange of message against national harmony appears on the web, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) would ask the telecom service provider to remove it before taking any tough action.
But if the directive is not complied with, stern actions would be taken against individuals or organisations responsible, it said.
The bill proposed that the authority to issue licences, and make financial and policy decisions should rest with the government, not the BTRC, which now enjoys the privileges exclusively.
The BTRC would issue licences on prior approval of the government, it said.
Another proposal was made for awarding punishment to telecom operators for wrongdoings without giving them scope for challenging the decision on cancellation and suspension of licences.
The bill placed by the post and telecommunications minister suggested a fine up to Tk 300 crore for violation of the provisions of the law.
It contains a few clauses outlining the means to bring the VoIP (voice over internet protocol) business under a legal framework.
The bill suggesting scaling up the punishment up to five years' imprisonment from six months or a maximum fine of Tk 5 crore from Tk 50,000 or both for posting obscene, indecent, threatening and grossly insulting message through use of telecom or radio apparatus.
Once the bill gets through, a "Social Obligation Fund" will be raised for expansion of telecom network in remote areas.
In defence of the proposed changes, Post and Telecommunications Minister Raziuddin Ahmed Razu said the amendments are required to materialise the vision to have a "digital Bangladesh".
In a brief statement tagged with a copy of the bill, he said the bill contains a provision for legalising VoIP business and issuing VoIP call termination operator licences to generate employment.
The minister said if the bill gets through, it would help curb illegal use of telecom technology and increase revenue income.
The bill was sent to the parliamentary standing committee on post and telecommunications ministry for scrutiny. The committee was asked to turn in a report in the House within 15 days.

Challenges facing the budget
IT cannot be said that the national budget for the next fiscal year (FY 2010-2011) at around Tk132.17 billion, which is 16.9 per cent of the proposed Gross Domestic Product (GDP) worth Tk 780.29 billion, is too ambitious given the overall size of the economy and the population. And compared to the revised budget for the outgoing fiscal (2009-10), it is only 35 per cent higher. From considerations of novelty, there is, however, not much to write home about except that it is a continuation of the earlier budget in terms of the emphasis given on human resources development, agriculture, power and energy and rural development. However, with extra thrust on infrastructures like power and energy on which the proposed allocation has been increased by 61.5 per cent, the new budget promises to facilitate investment better than before.
Looking at the upbeat performance of import and export in the last fiscal and an optimistic prediction on global economic recovery next year, the growth target has been fixed at 6.7 per cent. But challenges still remain since the envisaged power generation will take a long time to materialise and the external demand may hit some snags (as the scenario of instability and sluggish growth persists in the Eurozone countries which are the major importers of our RMG and other major exportable goods from Bangladesh).
Considering these factors the economic think tank Centre for Policy Dialogue expressed the view that the target of 6.7 per cent growth for FY 11 will be challenging. On the other hand, a growth rate between 6.0 and 6.5 per cent may be more realistic, it suggested in its analysis of the national budget for FY 2010-11.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR)'s success in achieving a 16.5 per cent revenue growth target in the outgoing fiscal has increased the expectation that the 18.5 per cent revenue growth target set for the next year might be an achievable one, especially considering the record of last financial year's best performers like income tax, Value Added Tax (VAT) and supplementary duty. However, the current trend of revenue collection by non-NBR and non-tax components demonstrate that they may lead to a shortfall. That calls for achieving a growth rate of around 20.4 per cent, which is higher than that projected at 16.8 per cent in the budget for FY11.
The biggest challenge will be to implement the projects (910 in total) taken up under the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for FY11. The emphasis should be laid on the sectors that have high proportion of the carried over projects and those to be completed by FY11. To accelerate the rate of implementation, the finance minister in the past (in FY10) promised to take some reform measures and use the Critical Path Method for monitoring project implementation. But nothing more of it could be heard since.
However, what is vital to look for in the ADP implementation is the quality of the projects implemented more than their number so that the whole exercise serves the economy better.
In view of the taxation measures, particularly VAT spread, it may exert a pressure on prices in general. The government may have to be watchful over pressure building up on prices.
About involving the private sector more intensely in the economy along with the public sector, it is commendable that in the proposed budget the share of the Public-Private Partnership has been set at 2.2 per cent of the budget. However, to make it attractive to the private sector, the government will need to clarify further their stakes and the profit they may draw from the ventures.
However, the success in reaching the targets as envisioned in the proposed national budget requires that the administration is transparent and accountable while development administration can deliver efficiently

Caring for human trafficking victims
HUMAN trafficking remains a major concern for Bangladesh, despite the increasing social awareness about it. There are of course reasons to believe that of late such trafficking has come down, but that is certainly no cause for anyone to sit back in complacency. With fairly regular reports of the many travails Bangladeshis, especially women and children, go through at the hands of traffickers, the significance of how much more needs to be done to neuter the problem can hardly be over-emphasised. That much is certain. But with this broad issue of putting a stop to or preventing human trafficking comes another, namely, the requirement of special care for victims of such trafficking.
The launch of a training manual on care and support for human trafficking victims on Friday could not have come at a better time. Fundamentally, what it argues for (and it is something we agree with) is for a setting in place of all those parameters within which these victims of this vicious trade can be reintegrated in society. Given that ours is yet essentially a conservative society, it is indeed hard for victims of human trafficking to re-enter the social structure once they have found their way back from the clutches of their tormentors. Women who have found themselves trapped in insidious circumstances have always had the misfortune of becoming double victims. In the first place, their sufferings at the hands of traffickers strip them of the dignity they have always had as citizens. In the second, when they are able to free themselves of such bondage, for so it is, they find that they are now the victims of a society which considers their misfortune as a stigma on their future. It is particularly in the rural regions, where conservative trends yet run deep, that these victims, generally women, find themselves ostracised from the rest of society. It is negativism such as this which must be addressed.
By and large, victims of human trafficking have been rescued by the law enforcing agencies as well as human rights groups in Bangladesh. It is therefore important that these bodies be in the forefront of the rehabilitation programme, through devising schemes aimed at assisting the victims. This can be done through engaging victims in work that will help them fend for themselves economically.
The onus is on all of us to ensure that victims of trafficking can return to a decent, purposeful life. The trauma they are put to must not be ignored. A society that does not care for its more unfortunate members is in danger of turning into a symbol of insensitivity.

A retrograde step
WE are both surprised and baffled at the finance minister's, or shall we say, the government's change of heart by the turn of a single year! Only in the last year's budget the finance minister had announced that private universities would be exempted from VAT in keeping with the government's goal for stimulating higher education in private sector. But there was a compulsion, too: the public universities do not simply have the capacity to accommodate burgeoning surges in the number of higher education seekers.
That was all very well; but what has changed the rationale now for the evidently ill-advised move by him to announce a sudden withdrawal of private universities from the VAT exemption list?
We believe, however, that the fact that the government is thinking of imposing VAT on private universities stems from an inadequate appreciation of what the private universities have been doing to the cause of higher education. For any number of reasons, the principal one being the much-delayed prospect of graduation from public universities contrasted with timely turnouts from private universities and the resultant connectivity to job market and still higher educational pursuits abroad, students feel constrained to go to private universities. Most important, the graduates and post-graduates from private universities are increasingly manning various professions in the private sector.
Most of the understanding about private universities veers in two extremes: either they are high-charging institutions catering to elitist demand for education, or they are highly commercialised organisations indulging in skimming profits at the expense of offering poor quality degrees. There is a populist, notional and subjective ring to it without the objectivity of accepting the existence of some front-ranking private universities within the country that have set certain standard of higher education.
In this class belong private universities that are non-profiting but tax-paying institutions so that to be imposing VAT on them will amount to passing the burden of higher expenses on to the guardians and students. For all we know, the board members of universities are not salaried. Also, it is being observed that sensitive private universities in deference to public criticism over exorbitant fees are trying to keep them within reasonable range. They also provide stipends to students of limited means. In order to implement their forward-looking programmes they have already made a plea for a tax waiver.
The government has every right to standardise the private universities, to audit their funds and performance in order to ensure that their claim as centres of excellence is well-founded. There cannot be any dispute on it.
What is more, we are saving a valuable quantum of foreign exchange that used to be spent in undergraduate studies abroad but which is now available inside the country at a reasonable cost.
One final point. The imposition of VAT on private universities is patently inconsistent with the government's declared prioritisation of higher education, human resource development, digitisation and private sector-led growth.

Mizan

Excess ministerial spending going unchecked
It seems rather extraordinary that the revised budget will be passed without having gone through a scrutiny of the public accounts committee (PAC) of the House. This is in contravention with the parliamentary rules of procedures. This practice of expenditure of public money in excess of original allocations, without the obligatory scrutiny by PAC to look into the justification of additional expenditures by ministries and divisions, before being passed as revised budget, has been going on since the rules of procedures were enacted in 1973.
And this time too the passage of the revised budget will be a formality, with the opposition abandoning its duty to the people to ask the government to explain the need for such expenditure, and the natural disinclination of the treasury members to question the rationale of it. And going by the list one is amazed to find that the extra spending by some ministries and offices amounts to more than fifty percent of the original allocation. There is an overall attitude of lax accountability and indiscipline as far as finances are concerned. Post facto-sanction can not only lead to more unplanned expenditure in the future but also result in wastage of public money.
The rules of procedure lay down quite specifically that expenditure in excess of the allotted amount will be examined by the accounts committee which shall make such recommendation as it deems fit. If the procedures have not been followed in the past that means a bad precedent has been set which must be avoided in future.
There is perhaps confusion as to how the provision regarding the said scrutiny will be implemented. Should the PAC, given its responsibility, call for the revised budget on its own, or the Speaker, ensure it is sent to the committee for appraisal? We feel that there is a case for both moving in a proactive manner. But in the ultimate analysis, it should be for the Speaker, as guardian of the House, to ensure that there is no loophole in any function of the parliament.
It bears repetition and reminding that public money is a sacred trust that should be handled most diligently, more so when it comes to the role of public representatives in ensuring accountability.

Death on the road, again
One more road mishap has claimed the lives of a young couple in the capital. This new tragedy only increases our level of concern about how safe we all are on the streets, especially when the roads appear to be hostage to reckless and untrained drivers. In these past few weeks, rash driving has put an end to a good number of lives. And now another bus driver has snuffed out two more lives. The worry now is whether the traffic authorities have in these recent weeks at all taken any steps to roll back casualties on the road, through making sure that driving is safe and that when accidents do occur those responsible for the accidents are swiftly dealt with by the law.
Even as we speak of the hazards citizens normally face on the roads, there are the structural problems afflicting our traffic system we cannot ignore, such as road space limitations. Consider some other glaring instances of what has been going wrong on the roads. Most of the vehicles which have lately caused accidents are not road worthy at all and yet the authorities have not been able to clamp down on them. These vehicles, dilapidated to the extreme, operate on city streets without headlights as well as rear lights. The brakes almost always are in bad shape, thus increasing the possibility of disasters taking place. Indeed, when these buses sometimes break down, it is seen that they do not have the necessary tools that can restore them to functioning order. And that is not all. There are very valid grounds to think that the licences issued to drivers, a very large number of whom are ill trained for the job, are false. With little or no knowledge of basic road safety rules, because they have not received proper training in driving, these drivers get behind the wheels of vehicles and so pose a clear threat to life and property from day one. Instances of such shortcomings are plenty. Generally, these drivers park their vehicles not in designated spaces but in areas that include the middle of busy roads to pick up passengers in a most callous manner.
Much debate has gone on about the ways and means of making roads safe for citizens. It is quite clear, though, that some priorities must be set where ensuring such safety is concerned. While traffic policemen must be thoroughly professional in their work, the larger body of citizens itself must be made fully cognizant of road regulations. The sight of people crossing roads through a clear violation of traffic rules is common. Jaywalking is a problem we have not yet come to terms with. The police can be firm here, but all that they do is ignore such transgressions.
In a very fundamental sense, people do need to be acquainted with road-related regulations. More than that, it is the BRTA and police who must prove that they can do their job to public satisfaction. Part of that job is to ensure discipline on the roads. But when such discipline is broken, it is their responsibility to slap down exemplary punishment on those who break discipline

Big void in national healthcare
FOR a long time we have been fed on an impression that structurally our district, upazila and rural health complexes have been among the best in the region and we never tired of showcasing it to visiting dignitaries. It's time however we stop resting on the laurel unless we have made them into thriving, vibrant health complexes with all the OPD and in-patient facilities constantly under the watch of qualified doctors and nurses.
This may sound like a wish-list at the moment; for, many of these complexes going through wear and tear over time now look virtually abandoned and deserted where empty beds and barest of furniture make a mockery of absentee 'medicare'.
So Dhaka-centred has been the choice of doctors' postings that they visit rural health centres to which they were posted for a mandatory period just to collect their monthly salary, so goes the story. How are then the district, upazila and rural health complexes to operate without their minimum complement of physicians, nurses, let alone consultants? Equipment are left to rust for lack of technicians and operators and the dispensaries exist only in name. There are, may be, exceptions but only a handful.
In this overall context, it is inexplicable that despite the government's repeated pledges some 25,000 sanctioned posts in public sector health complexes largely remain vacant. We are surprised to note that doctors, nurses, health assistants and community health service providers should be in short supply given the turn-out rates of our medical and paramedical institutions.
Of course, of the total sanctioned strength, the government has been able to recruit 3,551 doctors, and 6,100 health assistants in one and a half years of its tenure. At that rate, it would need more than its full term to complete the process of recruitment. How do the hospitals run under such a heavy strain of manpower shortage? They should expedite.
Little wonder, private clinics of indifferent quality are mushrooming even in the district and semi-urban areas. They do fill a void, but need to be standardised badly.
It is the primary responsibility of the government to reach medicare to the entire population at affordable prices if we are to meet the MDG goal for health for all. With our success on child immunisation programmes, a void remaining in terms of adult healthcare can only be an impediment to the much-needed consolidation of the gains from other improved social indicators like child immunisation and school enrolment.

Kholata

Alokpat (14-06-10)
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This is to Certify that Mr. Mizan Rahman S/o-Ali Ahmmed, Vill-Sonaher, Post-Khalesakota, Ps-Banaripara, Dist-Barisal bearing Passport No-R0036482 residing at 67/2/A, Shantibag, Rabia House, Flat No-302, Motijheel, Dhaka-1217, Bangladesh, has been working as a Asst. News Editor for the last one year in this Organization. I wants to participante in a International seminar, Tur, News collection and outher,

9.6.10

Mizan, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Dhaka News

This is to Certify that Mr. Mizan Rahman S/o-Ali Ahmmed, Vill-Sonaher, Post-Khalesakota, Ps-Banaripara, Dist-Barisal bearing Passport No-R0036482 residing at 67/2/A, Shantibag, Rabia House, Flat No-302, Motijheel, Dhaka-1217, Bangladesh, has been working as a Asst. News Editor for the last one year in this Organization. He wants to participante in a seminar (Organised by UNI Apro) at Nepal. The Management has granted 15 (fifteen) days leave effective from the date of his departure to attend the seminar.