SWAPNO project benefits 12,492 poor women

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DHAKA, June 15, 2021 (BSS) – Rashida Begum, a middle-aged woman, had fallen in a deep trouble when her husband died and it was difficult for her to manage meal once a day for her two children.

At that awful situation, he had been able to overcome the poverty with the help of a government’s income generation project, Strengthening Women’s Ability for Productive New Opportunities (SWAPNO).

Rashida took Taka 7,200 as loan from SWAPNO project and purchased a sewing machine. She is now making bags and sales the product in different markets.

“After the death of my husband, I became hopeless as there was no way to manage food for my children. I started doing work as a house servant to manage food and other basic needs,” she said while sharing bitter experience of her life with BSS.

Rashida said she tried to do any type of works to survive. “Later, I got a job at a KG school as an ayah (servant) at a salary of Taka 1,000 per month,” she added.

But that was not enough to maintain her family as her son was studying in class-IX. She could not bear his educational expenses. She managed a job for his son at a grocery where his salary was Taka 1,500.

But that was not enough to maintain her family. Under such a situation, she came to know about a government’s project SWAPNO which will recruit some employees. She went to the Union Parishad and stood in the line.

“God blessed me; I got the job through a lottery. I also got a lottery of Taka 7,200. I purchased a tailoring machine,” said Rashida, an inhabitant of village Patkelghata, in Swarulia Union of Tala Upazila under Satkhira District.

“I dreamed to be a small trader . . . SWAPNO has helped me fulfill my dream. I’m happy,” she said.

Like Rashida, Malati, Shaheda Parvin, many other women in Satkhira and Kurigram districts changed their life through joining the SWAPNO.

Talking to BSS, National Project Manager of the SWAPNO Kajal Chatterjee said the SWAPNO project is a social security project of the government that is helping 12,492 poor women in the rural areas of Satkhira, Kurigram, Jamalpur, Lalmonirhat and Gaibanda districts to realize their dreams and potentials.

The Local Government Division has been implementing the project since April 2015 with support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Marico International, and BSRM and it will be finished in December, 2021, he informed.

“A total of 8,928 poor women have already been benefited under the two phases of SWAPNO project in Satkhira and Kurigram districts. After getting huge responses in the two districts, we have started our third phase in three more districts,” he added.

In the third phase, he said, a total of 3,564 poor women of 99 unions under 11 upazilas in the rural areas of Lalmonirhat, Gaibandha and Jamalpur districts are being benefited under the social safety net project since January, 2020.

The project manager said SWAPNO is a social security project of the government and major features of the project include, fixing wage contract for 18-months under public works component, need-based life skills, livelihood trainings and formal financial assistance.

He said the objective of the project is to ensure sustainable livelihood and food security for extreme poor and vulnerable rural women.

Kajal Chattarjee said the project is generating employment for ultra-poor and vulnerable women who will receive their wage through digital transfer.

He said the project is also encouraging responsible people for saving by facilitating formal savings and participation in informal saving groups known as Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs).

In order to ensure livelihood sustainability, he said, training on need based livelihoods is being provided and linkages are being established with private sector to facilitate formal sector employment.

All the indicators of the project indicate that the beneficiaries of the project are living a better life, the manager said, adding that the women would be able to continue to do so in the absence of the project.

He said the project is playing a vital role in increasing income of poor people and thus contributing to a drastic reduction of poverty.

The increase in income has resulted in increase in both food and non-food expenditures, particularly, education expenditure.

“Livestock is now the main asset of the beneficiaries. Not only the amount, but also the composition of asset has changed – livestock constitutes about 43 percent of the total asset which was only 13 percent before SWAPNO,” he added.

He informed that 100 percent beneficiaries are receiving their wages through e-payment for ensuring transparency in the wage payment system.

He said SWAPNO has been considered as the best Social Protection project in a survey conducted by the Cabinet Division. Scaling up of this project in 200 Upazilas has been recommended in the National Social Security Strategy paper, he added.