Target Group
Summary
1. Women
Women from the ethnic minority communities indigenous to the Chittagong Hill Tracts have far more physical mobility than the majority of women in the rest of Bangladesh. They are actively engaged in productive work along with their reproductive and community roles. However, despite their multiple important roles, women remain a marginalised section of society. This marginalisation is on top of the discrimination they face as a member of the indigenous community. They have little actual control over productive resources and no influence over all levels of decision making from household to local and regional politics . Almost all the traditional leaders (Circle Chiefs, Headman, Karbaries) are men. Women have little access to information and have few linkages with outside communities, institutions and services. They suffer the most from various forms of discrimination and rights violations.
2. Children
Children represent the future of the indigenous people (IP) of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Growing up in an environment characterised by exclusion, marginalisation and poverty means that disadvantaged situation the IP live in will continue and probably become worse. The lack of government services and opportunities restricts the possibility of the younger generation altering this and becoming the leaders and change makers the IP community need to take control of their future.
Areas of Disadvantage
Education
1. Women:
Cultural practices and a low valuation of mainstream education have resulted in indigenous women being routinely denied access to education. Both illiterate and innumerate, they are unable to understand electoral, administrative and medical information or to use basic communication (signing name) to take up their rights. This results in many groups of people being excluded from society, the economy and political participation.
2. Children:
The Children of the CHT are excluded from taking up their rights to education due to three inter-related reasons. The first factor is the related to the high levels of poverty which indigenous families live in. Due to this poverty children, especially girls, are often required to start working in income generating tasks meaning they drop out of school earlier. The second factor relates to the language barrier as teaching is often in Bengali rather than their familiar indigenous language. The final factor is the difficult terrain in which children live meaning that they often have to travel long distances to reach government schools.
Health
• CHT districts account for nearly 90% of total malaria cases reported in the country.
• A prevalence of diarrhea is 3%, three times higher than in rural Bangladesh (1%).
• The level of chronic energy deficiency in the CHT is deemed as serious.
• Due to a lack of professional staff and knowledge many mothers who experience complications during pregnancy and childbirth subsequently die
• Access to safe water & sanitation is extremely poor due to poverty (can not afford), lack of awareness/facility and topography.
• Many of the villages continue to use open hanging latrines or open defecation, increasing the prevalence of faecal borne and other communicable diseases.
• Family planning, immunisation and other national programs & events are irregular and not functional in the region.
Economy
Shifting crop cultivation is a traditional form of agriculture among various indigenous groups living in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Direct engagement of ethnic women in agriculture is almost 90% and the jhum cultivation is done extensively by women. Women are less involved in post production and have little control over household income or resources. However, women manage the households and work on the farms meaning that their workload is enormous but they have few legal rights, they have no role in the community decision-making processes and they are not allowed to own or inherit property.
Governance
The relationship indigenous women have with government institutions is characterised by lack of knowledge, language barrier (all information in Bengali) and lack of opportunity to become involved in the decision making process. Whilst indigenous people have reserved seats in local government these are typically occupied by men.
A similar situation is found in the Traditional Indigenous governance structure with the – King, Headman and Karbari traditionally being male, and women having a lack of knowledge and ability to access decision making structures.
In general, decision making at community and regional level is seen as the provision of men.