Integrated efforts to protect domestic workers rights stressed

Integrated efforts of all the government and non-government entities concerned can be the best way of protecting the legitimate rights of the domestic workers.

In the present social context, many of the solvent families, even some of the low-incoming ones, are seen dependent on the household workers. So, right-protection of domestic workers has become an urgent need.

Present government has formulated the ‘Domestic Workers Protection and Welfare Policy, 2015’ with the main thrust of ensuring protection and welfare of all the household workers.

Government officials and development activists came up with the observation while addressing an advocacy meeting titled “Empowerment of Domestic Workers” in Rajshahi on Wednesday.

On behalf of its “Strengthen Women’s Movement for Increased Participation of Women Working at Informal Occupations in Rajshahi’’ project, Association for Community Development (ACD) organized the meeting at its office conference hall in Rajshahi city.

Deputy Director of the Department of Social Services Hasina Momtaz and Assistant Director of Women Assistance Pro-gramme Mahbuba Sultana addressed the meeting as chief and special guests respectively with Councilor of Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) Towhidul Haque Sumon in the chair.

ACD has been implementing the project under “Empowering Women through Civil Society Actors in Bangladesh (EWCSA)’ supported by OXFAM in Bangladesh co-funded by the European Union.

Around 400 domestic female workers are getting capacity building support in terms of ensuring their legitimate rights through empowerment with the project interventions. Initiative has also been taken to bring them under awareness and orientation programmes related to their human rights and gender based discrimination, violence and sexual exploitation they face in their workplace.

The 15-month project is being implemented in Ward Numbers 18, 19, 24 and 28 in RCC for empowering marginalized wom-en working in informal occupations and strengthening public institutions to ensure responsiveness towards gender con-cerns.