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Jaba Rani Chowdhury, a college student, had stopped using Facebook because of online bullying, but Grameenphone’s Digital Inclusion for Marginalised Communities project helped her return to the social media platform by teaching her how to report and block online abusers and how to protect her privacy.

Over the past two years, the initiative has reached more than 33 lakh people of marginalised communities — from the hills to the haors.

Participants have learnt how to use the internet safely, access government services, open mobile financial accounts and explore e-commerce opportunities.

The project, jointly run by Grameenphone, Plan International Bangladesh and Telenor Asia, aims to ensure that people, including women, youth, people with disabilities, ethnic minorities and tea-garden workers, can safely and confidently join the digital world.

Like others, Jaba also attended a digital literacy session under the project.

‘I came to know how to save myself from online harassment and cyberbullying,’ Jaba said. ‘Now I use social media without fear, get connected with many people and can learn new things.’

‘For us, technology is not just about innovation,’ said Farhana Islam Teresa, head of environmental, social and governance at Grameenphone, at a recent event in Rajshahi.

‘It’s about including people from the remotest corners of Bangladesh who lack the privileges many of us take for granted — access to education, online services, healthcare or even information itself,’ she said.

Through courtyard meetings, school sessions and community workshops, trainers teach smartphone basics, online safety, mobile banking and e-governance tools under the project.

For Shrabani Karmkar, a 24-year-old housewife from Khetur village in Rajshahi’s Godagari upazila, the training opened a door she did not know existed.

‘I thought phones were only for my children’s scholarship money,’ she said. ‘Now I want to open a Facebook page for my sewing work.’

Ingamul Sardar, a construction worker from the same village, said, ‘Through the training, I have learnt how to apply for birth registration or NID card online.’

‘Before, many in our area were cheated through mobile banking. Now we know how to keep our money safe,’ said another participant, Suman Sardar.

Farhana said, ‘Internet access is still a taboo for many women. We often have to speak to their guardians and community leaders to allow them to attend sessions. But the courage they have showed is inspiring.’

‘These small, simple lessons — how to stay safe online, how to open a mobile banking account, how to access government services — can make a marginal difference in someone’s life. And that difference, multiplied across millions, is what real progress looks like,’ Farhana said.