Development workers on Wednesday called for adopting gender responsive planning and budgeting guideline and monitoring tools to ensure equality.
They made the demand at a national workshop on 鈥楪ender Responsive Planning and Budgeting Guideline and Monitoring Tools鈥�.
The workshop was held at Hotel Serena in the capital.
The workshop held under 鈥榃omen鈥檚 Empowerment for Inclusive Growth鈥� project was initiated by Bangladesh Nari Pragati Sangha with support from UN Women Bangladesh.
Joint secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Prakash Kanti Chowdhury, stressed the need for a gender-sensitive national action plan, appropriate budget allocations, and a robust monitoring system for women鈥檚 empowerment.
He urged development aid organisations, civil society, and government institutions for collaborations to ensure women鈥檚 empowerment.
The deputy representative of the UN Women Bangladesh, Navnita Sinha, highlighted the historical significance of gender budgeting in Bangladesh, noting its expansion from four ministries in 2009-10 to 44 ministries currently.
鈥楪ender-sensitive planning, budgeting guidelines, and monitoring tools are important to reduce inequality and effectively implement gender budgeting,鈥� Navnita said.
Freedom fighter Rokeya Kabir, also the executive director of BNPS, pointed out that over 50 per cent of the population was women who still faced discrimination and oppression everywhere.
She said, 鈥楴ational budget allocations were crucial for equitable resource distribution and women鈥檚 economic, social, and political empowerment.鈥�
She called for greater awareness among policymakers regarding quotas for disadvantaged communities, sexual harassment, and women鈥檚 inheritance rights.
Assistant representative of United Nations Development Programme Bangladesh Prosenjit Chakma said that the country鈥檚 overall development was unattainable if women, constituting half of the population, were left behind.
He hoped that gender-sensitive planning and budget formulation guidelines would positively impact women empowerment in the country.
Senior policy adviser of the Netherlands embassy, Mashfika Zaman Satyar, UN Women programme manager, Tapati Saha, UN Women programme officer Humaira Bint Farooq and others were also present at the event.
