DHAKA, March 8, 2021 (BSS) – Womenfolk should be imbued with self-respect,
dignity and confidence for accelerating the campaign of women empowerment
across the society.
“When a woman is educated through acquiring knowledge in different
disciplines, she will be empowered…. so education and healthcare facilities
are the tool for their empowerment,” Runa Khan, founder and executive
director of Friendship, a non-government organization, shared her experiences
in an exclusive interview with BSS marking the International Women’s Day.
She said for ensuring their dignified life, they (women) must achieve ways
of most essential components such as knowledge, skills and finding ways to
survive better in the society.
Runa Khan said women community particularly in remote areas is facing
tremendous obstacles in every sphere of the society.
She said two stigmas — religious and social — are largely responsible
for getting fewer opportunities from society. Explaining these stigmas, the
development campaigner said deprivation starts for a girl child from family
level first and then she faces discrimination at every level of society.
Runa Khan observed women in hard- to-reach areas are not getting equal
facilities like their male counterparts, which creates great barrier for
their advancement.
Narrating the journey of her development organization, she said,
“Friendship sailed into the char of the Jamuna river in 2002 with its first
floating hospital… at that time, everyone discouraged me saying it is impossible to run a
hospital in such remote areas. As a woman, initially, I heard everything was
impossible whenever my organization had taken any initiative.”
“But almost 20 years later I have proved everything is possible.”
This is a very common perception about women in the male-dominated society
that women cannot, the Friendship founder said in most case, female community
is forced to accept negative social structure of the society created by male
community.
Time has come to break this negative social structure through providing
equal opportunities to womenfolk, she added.
Runa Khan said, “If we really want to change fate of the people living in
remote areas, we have to empower community people giving highest importance
to women advancement.”
Very common trend of development organizations of Bangladesh is project
based work; she said adding friendship is totally an exception from this
general trend of work. “We work with community people… we have made these
people skilled workforce through providing necessary training.”
Besides, nurturing women leaders in the unaddressed communities where Friendship works, the organization is led by women at every level, said Runa Khan.
Three of its international entities around the world are chaired by women.Friendship Belgium is led by Her Royal Highness Princess Esmeralda de Rethy, Friendship France led by William Lebedel, Friendship Luxembourg led by Marc Elvinger, Friendship Netherlands led by Dorothee ter Kulve and Friendship UK led by Kenneth Hay. Friendship International is co-chaired by Runa Khan.