Radwan Mujib Siddiq, a trustee of Centre for Research and Information (CRI), will confer the Joy Bangla Youth Award to 15 youth-driven groups on Monday.
They have worked with scarce resources but hugely impacted on communities with their innovative projects.
Themed on the Liberation War and name after the war cry of the Bengali freedom fighters, the Joy Bangla Youth Award (JBYA) created more expectations this year than any of the previous since the country is celebrating the 50th year of its independence.
Though the event takes place once every two years, this year the gap has been slashed to one year to time it with the golden jubilee of the country’s victory from the occupation army of Pakistan.
The event will feature recorded speeches of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her ICT adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy, who is also the chairperson of CRI, said sources at Young Bangla, the youth platform of CRI that took the initiative of launching the Joy Bangla Youth Award.
JBYA 2021, the fifth installment of the award, received entries from a total of 750 youth-led organisations that are silently transforming society.
The applications were inspected by a high-octane jury including celebrities such as cricketer Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and actress Jaya Ahsan. They shortlisted 31 applicants, out of which, 15 will receive the award.
Since its inception in 2014, JBYA has awarded 120 organisations for changing the social paradigm and advancing inclusion.
Young Bangla, the largest network of the country’s youths, is a hub of 12,500 volunteers, 2,00,000 members, 300 youth organisations.
The goal of this platform is not just awarding or recognising the young changemakers but also helping them network, connect with policymakers, and receive proper grooming.
Owing to the supports provided by Young Bangla, a couple of past awardees later claimed international recognitions, including Sadat Rahman, who won International Children’s Peace Prize for his contribution against cyberbullying.
Through CRI’s youth platform Young Bangla, which launched Joy Bangla Youth Award, Radwan is working to empower and inspire young people through numerous initiatives to create entrepreneurs and leaders.
Radwan turned a youth icon through his interactive sessions with young people and creative projects such as films, comics, and concerts to present history in the form of stories.
His creative endeavors include Mujib, a graphic novel based on the unfinished memoir of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, setting a unique trend in the country to tell history for kids in the form of comics, blending learning with entertainment.
Radwan also co-produced Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale, a docufiction that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's trials and tribulations after the massacre of much of her family, including her Father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
A London of School of Economics graduate, Radwan edits the country’s first policy-based magazine WhiteBoard, covering the gamut of policy issues through in-depth analysis from globally acclaimed academics, researchers, and experts.
