The Livelihoods Improvement of Urban Poor Communities Project (LIUPCP) of the Local Government Division in partnership with the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) & the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) organised a day-long workshop titled ‘Mayors’ Knowledge Exchange Workshop on LIUPCP Good Practices’ on 29 May at a hotel in Dhaka.
The objective of the workshop was to share and discuss good practices around pro-poor and climate-resilient urban development emerging from LIUPCP interventions in 19 cities and towns.
Md Tazul Islam, MP, Minister, Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development & Cooperatives (MoLGRD&C) was present as the Chief Guest while Stefan Liller, Resident Representative, UNDP Bangladesh, and Matt Cannell, Deputy High Commissioner and Development Director, British High Commission were present as Special Guests. Muhammad Ibrahim, Secretary, Local Government Division, MoLGRD&C chaired the workshop.
In her opening remarks, Sonali Dayaratne, Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Bangladesh said, “The government has taken full ownership of our urban resilience programme. It has showcased how community women are tailoring solutions to the community’s needs in cities and towns.”
Mayor of Dhaka North Md Atiqul Islam, while chairing the session on ‘Good practices of community empowerment and locally led approaches for climate-resilient infrastructure’ said, “Local action is the key to national success, and a bottom-up community-led development process will ensure pro-poor urban development.”
Mayor of Chandpur Md Jillur Rahman said, “Through LUIPCP, we have reached the urban poor households facilitating women’s participation in city-level committees.”
“Getting our voices heard was not an easy journey – but thanks to LIUPC and the municipality for creating a space that has shaped us who few are today” felt Ms Nazma Alam, Chairperson of Chandpur Town Federation.
The Chief Guest Md Tazul Islam, MP said, “By 2041, we want to become a developed country and this development journey will leave no one behind”. “To look forward to using the learnings from this workshop in the coming days.”
Stefan Liller, while addressing the workshop said, “Our longstanding partnership with the Bangladesh Government and the UK spans nearly two decades, showcasing a robust model of urban poverty reduction and climate change adaptation. The programme continues to strengthen resilience at the community level, ensuring that our efforts are integrated into broader urban development strategies of local governments.
