Since human development begins in a child’s earliest years, proper investment and comprehensive programmes can be a game-changer in the lives of the youngest working populations.
Fulfilling essential requirements-food, health care, education and safe environment- can pave the way for child’s proper development.
Nurturing such humanitarian and social-changing motto Farah Tuba formed a different type of social organization named ‘Latim’ in 2017 to ensure components required for child’s development.
She had a clear perception that underscores the fact that education, nutrition, child care and health are the most important in proper development of children.
Tuba did her Masters from the Early Childhood Development Department of BRAC University. Earlier, she did her Masters from the Child Development and Social Relations Department of Home Economic College in Dhaka. After completion of her institutional education, she chose child development as her working field.
Tuba founded the organisation ‘Latim’ with the cooperation of Noshin Tabassum and Iffat Hossain. They all were students of Home Economics College. To begin with they started to reach the advices to common people on child development both at home and abroad.
Tuba said, “We provided advices through a page of social media- facebook. But we thought that it would not work properly. That time, we concentrated on education and creative learning materials.”
On these contexts, she said, the volunteers of ‘Latim’ started to make educational materials.
She said ‘Latim’ organised a competition on making educational materials at the national level. A total of 165 hand-made educational materials were submitted to the concerned of the competition from all over the country, she added.
Tuba said the panel of experts at first selected 25 educational materials and later, they selected 11 materials. The names of first, second and third place winners will be declared in August and the winners will receive Taka 20,000, Taka 15,000 and Taka 10,000 respectively, she added.
She said a workshop was arranged for all competitors who took part in the competition. The winners will get opportunity to work for the Latim in future and ‘we will take an initiative to reach the creative educational materials to educational institutions’, she added.
Tuba continued, “We were three at the beginning with the organization. And presently, five more volunteers are involved with the organisation.”
Latim member Noshin Tabassum said, “I got involved with the organization after getting inspiration from Tuba. I don’t like usual work. Now I can do creative work myself.”
Tuba was admitted to the Pali and Buddhist Studies Department of Dhaka University. But she had interest in physiology and sociology. In the next year, she was admitted to Home Economics College.
Investments in the country’s youngest children relates to the future of the country as Bangladesh pledges to transform her workforce as human resources.
Child development is no doubt a complex challenge as it requires a multi-sectoral approach. Bangladesh has been carrying out programmes on child development, but integrated approaches are more important to really achieve the goal.
