NOTES ON WO!MEIJ IN DEVELOP'EN= NO. 24 (Case Studie.s) CASE ST-DY OF THE WO'EN'S CO>LONENTS OF TYE BANGLADESH POPULATION PROJECT AND THE SECOND POPULATION AND FAMILY HEALTH PROJECT This case study is or.e of a series prepared exnressl:: for discussion by WOrld 3ank staff in wor.shiops on wurlen in develo:,-zn:. it is in no sense in ev:aluation of the Dro-ect, and des^ribes cnly: thcse cf i:s features vh4ch are relevant to the concerns of the wor-Ks.oc. Of''ce nf the Advisor on ';omen in Development u.orld 198k Jiuly *1932 BANGLADESH PO?ULATION AND FAMILY HEALTH DROJECT Concents 1. The Country Context 1 11. Wozen in Rural 3angladesh 2 A. Tradicional Social Organizat'on and che Value of Children 2 B. Ptrdah and the Statvs of Vo=en 3 C. Wo=en's Roles 'n the Rural Ecnomy 3 D. Wonen'e Chanci-'g Survival Stracegies 4 III. The Project 5 A. 'Wonen's Cooperatives of the ln:egraced Rural Develop=ent 6 B. Social welfare Mothers' Club ?rogram 7 C. Women's Vocational Training of the Bangladesh Women's Rehabilitation and Welfare Foundztion 8 IV. Project ?erfor-ance 10 A. Ceographic Coverage and Coordination 10 B. Marketing 10 C. Pro2ra= Costs 11 D. Evaluation and Monitoring 12 Table I - Data for tbe People's Republic of Bangladesh 13 Table II - Exhibit L: 3angladesh 13 Taole III - Wo=en's ?rogras Targets and Achievements of F'r.c ?roject and Proposed Target for Second Project 16 This case s;udy: *as prepared by che -taf- of The ;orld 'ank Office of che Adviser on ',o=en in De7eloo=en: with :he assisc^ance o: t-.e folo.- -. , cn-s:-:ants: Catherine >verhol:, "ary: 3. Anderson, Kat:-Ieen 1:'z. la=es A-..s:n. enJ .ke :ase is cs ser-e as zhe s bas' zor c s ciso:sion rather :nan to illustrate e- -er e.:e-e:ive or i.e::ec::e han'.ing of a project situac_cn. Case Study of the Wcren's Components of the Bangladesh PopuLaticn Project and the Seccnd Population and Family Health Project I. The Country Context In the Republic of Bangladesh, growing poverty since the mid- 1960's has brought increasing landlessness, declining real wages and contiziuous declines in caloric intake for large segments of the popula- tion. (See Tables I and 11 for data on Bangladesh). "Hard core" poverty-- defined as an inco=e level at which only 85 p2rcenc or less of recommended minimum caloric intake is mec-- was practically non-existent in 1963/64. By 1976/77, 60 percent and 40 percent respectively of the rural and urban population of Bangladesh lived in "hard core" poverty. Whereas children have traditionally been highlv valued in Bangladesh fa=ilies, as access to land decreases and em?lo-ment oppor- tunities are scarce, fa=ilies derive fewer economic ber.efits from chil- dren. Under acute scarcity, the feeding of children Thro-ugh their early teens can overtax non-expandable family resources. As work opportunities on tne land diminish, education of children beconies a necessary avenue to nroductive employ=.ent and this further adds to the costs of raising child-en. The current socio-economic conditions of the rural poor nay be exerting pressure for smaller, planned families. The Govern-ent of Bangladesh in its First Five Year Plan (1973- 1978) placed very high priority on population control and set as ics goal a decline irn fertility cc replacemen.t level bv the end of the century. (See Table I for data on Bangladesh's population). In order co meet this goal, contraceptive usage will have to be extended to about 54 per- cent of married women. The government estimates that about 25 percent of eligible couples are n-w ready to accept family planning aids. A broad-based, multi-sectoral population program was under- taken during the First Five Year Plan and extended during the Second Five Year Plan. In addition, during the Second Plan, the government is undertaking a variety of unconventional efforts to try to meet its ambitious population control goal. These include a rour-year biith moratoriu= to be implemented through com=unity particlpazion with awards beIng given to successful villages, providing soecial health :are to these villages. raising the legal age for marriage, devising new wa,s o. ex-end'nz fa-ily Dlanning ser-.-ces. expanding the participa- tion of tc;e oriv-te sector in ;the fa=ily planning program and develcping flexyV" financial an- administrative p-ocedures for the govern.ment azen, ,nvolved in the program. A nation-vide cami%lv planning delivery system nas :een developed which uc?s ceams o. family planning field work.ers zor home visits an-d has param.ed!cal staff and physicians stationed in rurai family we-lare cenzers at thana healch ccm: exes to deliver familv ?lanning services and basic maternal and child `ealth care. Several government deparrtents that have extensive concact witn the public 'nave inteerated family piann _n; infcr- ma:ion, educat_on and motivation ac-ivities inzo their rezular prcgrazms. The primary coord'nator of most poouiacijn activities -within govern-ment -2- is the Population Control and Family Planning Division (PCFPD) of the Ministry of Health and Population Control. The government also supports family planning activicies in the private seccor and within the village self-reliant develop=ent movemer.t. Believing there are links between population growth and the status of women, it also seeks to promote the social and economic emancipation-sf -:omen. II. Women in Rural Bangladesh In Bangladesh, as in other countries, poverty tends to affect women more acutely tl.n men. The condition of women in rural Bangladesh is part'_ularly pre:rious because of .heir narrowly circumscribed :oles within the family and within traditional social organization. Even though actively engaged in productive activities, women are seen as, and often even consider themselves, wholly dependent on male guardians. A. Traditional Social Orzanization and the Value of Children ria=ilies in Bangladesh are patrilineal, patriarchal and patrilocal. Upon marriage, a woman moves to her husband's localit; and becc=es ,art of his lineage. On average, women marry at 15.9 years of age while men marry at 24 years. Marriages are arranged and ties of conjugal affec;ion are expected to cevelop af;er narriage. Pcsitions wichin families are hierarchically defined by sex and age so that men dominate wo=en, mothers-in-la-w dominate daugh:ers-in-law, and newly married wives cf younger sons are subordinate to everybody in che husband's fa=ily. T. difficu .ties arise, a young woman's familj of origin cannot be relied upon to intervene on her behalf. Repudiation or divorce are ever oresent risks. Young wives are, therefore, prudent to secure their positions within their husbands' families through unciring work and other do=est'c virtues, through submissiveness to their husbands and mothers-in-lav, and by bearing children, pr^Zerably sons, in quick succession. For rural families seeking to expand their holdings, chil-'ren-- particularly sons-- have through their labor and wage earnings been a decisive advantage. Further-ore,-because of women's suoordinate rcles relativo co men, a *farilv could .ace ra;.td ecnomuic decline and even dest!tution if the male head dies or leaves without being succeeded jy sons who can work the land and back up property claims. For-mal ad- ministrative structures are weak at the village level and cannoc be re''ed upon to de-end legal ticles for women without husbands or other -a e protectors. Sons are, therefcre, c-erished and indulged frcm ar. earLv age as possi.ble future guardians and providers. However, recent pressures of ponulation on ian2, leading to increased landlessness and Drogress -:e i=moverishment, iave *;ea;:ene- traditional su:oor: syste=s based on 'Kinsh:p cbiigat:cns so that w;c=en who for-erlv could de?end on Tale k':n for suLoort freauentlv find _-a this suppor; is nct now available. -3- B. Purdah and the Status of Women Purdah is still a near-universally accepted value in Bangladesh, Suiding women's conduct in public and shaping the respective roles of men and women. The prescriptions of Islamic purdah are based on acknowledg- ment of sexual desire and aggression as ever-present and difficult-to- control elements of the human condition. Purdah is meant to insti:ution- alize restraint through social controls by limiting contacti,between men and women and by creating sheltered spaces for females.- Koranic presc-ipcicns themselves provide only an outline of how the purdah system is to be defined and one finds great variation among Muslim societies. In rural 3angladesh women in purdah stay within the family compound or its i=ediate vicinity. Open fields and public roads are defined as "male space" which women traverse only exceptionally and for reasons determined co be valid by male religious or community leaders. .hen travelling, women stay in closed conveyances or cover themselves as much as possible. Such stricr purdah is, however, difficult and costly to maintain and only a few families in each village can afford to do so. Nevertheless, this way of l;ie is the ideal and many villagers try as ruch as possible co emulate it.- C. Women's Roles in the Rural Economv Islam does not bar women from econonic activities and specifically safeguards women's rights to proceeds from their o-n work. The traditional Bengali ideal is, however, that a wo'an should not work or, at least, should not be seen as needing to work. According to this tradition, women carnot buy or sell in local markets, negotiate on their own behalf or seek paid work when in need. Because of these restrictions, wocen are, in fact, dependent on male kinfolk or other intermediaries for realizing proceeds from their work and are, therefore, not always able to retain cor.trol over their earnings. Work tasks within family units are strictly segregated by gender. Men wor:k in the fields, buy and sell in the market and manage all contacts with the outside uorld. In grain production, men do all of the field work including sowing, weeding and tending aud harvesting. Women are responsible .or all rice processirng and preparation .or the next crop. Processing involves husking, parboiling, drying and winnow-ng. Each o. tnese tasks is time consuming and in:olves several steps such as preoaration of che ;hreshing floor before husking, turning the grains in .e sun several times a day for dryirng, and reoeated winnocing both before husking and afternard. 'omen are also responsible for grain 1/ H-anna Papanek. Purdah: Separate I;orlds and S.-bolic Shelter. In ComDarative Studies in Societv and Historv, Vol. ,0, ';o. 3 (1973): 239-32-5. 2/ cf. Taherunessa ibdullah a.d Scndra Zeidensteii. ho-en's Reality: Critical Issues -o-r ?rogran Design. In Studies in Fa-il: ?lanninn. SDecial Issue, Vol. '0 No. 11/12 (1979): 3-,-32. -4- storage. Yields and the sales or consumption value of the ric. crop depend directly on the skill with which thiese tasks are perfor.ed. Women's other direct contributions to the household economy include fruit and vegetable cultivation, animal husbandry ane handi- craft production of needed household goods and implements such as baskets, quilts, fishnets, et:. They produce, process and prepare all items in the family diet. They prepare the ground for pldnting of the household garden and fence the area as well. They sow the seeds, water, cultivate and harvest in this area. If there is a surplus, a woman mav sell it through an intermediary - usually a child or her husband - in the market. Women are entirely in charge of poultry raising and share the responsibility for cows, bullocks and goats with men. They feed, water and miik these animals with some help frcm their children. in artisan households, women perform attendant tasks to support their husband's production. 'Women are responsible for all childcare. These descriptions of men's and women's activi:ies eescribe households which, while they may be at a subsistence level, are none- theless viable eccnomically. In these, uomen are found to work on average 17 hours per day while men work 11. A number of rural house- holds are below subsistence. In these, men and women have virtually no resources o' their own with which to work. The landless and some small farmers derive about half of total family incce 'rom *ork on other people's farms, trading, crafts or rural public *;crks. In spite of tradition, women are now engaaing in all of these activities except trade. Women's opportunities for wage work are, however, severely circumscribed by very narrow geographic and functional limits. Because of purdah restric:ions, a woman will normally seek work only in house- holds which are locaced within a narro; radius from her homest2ad and with whom her family has some prior social connection. Functionally women are mainly restricted to domestic work and crop processing. Rice processing accounts for about half of all female -mDloyment in rural areas. Women's -wages are depressed by the scarcity of such work opportunities relative to the number of women seeking them. When engaged in work on "w;omen crops," w:omen receive about one-third of .he wage rate paid to men. Current government policies -favor che mechanization of post- harvest activities. These policies, if pursued, will eiim3nace so,.e employmcnt oppor:_ni:ies for women. 3ecause yields are lower when rice is mechanically processed, total grain supplies will also be reduced. D. Wcmen's Chanzinz Survival Strate2ies Within the recent past, rural soc etv in 3angladesh ap)ears r3 have changed rapidly in at least two respects: rural women are assuming -5- more visible roles in w;ork and public life and the desire for fewer children has increased maarc2dly. The experience of the Independence War and civil strife has made wor.en a:are that secluc'ozi affords only cenuous protection. These upheavals also increased the number of households that are headed by women who, without =ale kin, depend for survival on their own resource- fulness and ability to find paid work. These women, and those others who because of landlessness are also impoverished, comprise a number of the households below subsistence. The women of chese households are seeking differenc and broader economic opportunities, racher chan the birthing of many sons, .or cheir o.n survival. III. The Project The World Bank has assisced Bangladesh with two population pro- jects. The First Project cost about USS45.7 million for which an IDA credit of US$15 million was approved in 1975. The object of the First Project was to increase the demand for and supply of maternal and child health "MCH) and Family planning services. To do this, the project focused on 1) training =ore '!CH and family planning paramedical workers and increasing their numbers; 2) beginning piloc schemes to introduce family li-e educa:ion into the activities of five sectoral ministries and to suppcrt women's vocazional training; 3) strengthening the mass media's capacity to deal with population topics; 4) building up appropriate research and evaluation capabilities and 3) supporting private sector activities and innovative ideas in family planning. The Second Project, estimated to cost US$110 million for which an IDA credit of U5S32 million was approved in May 1979, became effective in July 19S0. Six bilateral agencies cofinanced about 60 percEnt of the costs of both projects on a grant basis. The Second Project also *was inten4ed to provide for training of health and family planning personnel and for the extension or family plannirg through information, education and motivation activities. In addition, it focused o,n the improve=ent of maternal and child health and fami;.r planning rvice de:iverv- and on strengther.ing the Covernment's caDacity fcr proj . i:ple=entation and for research and evaluation. In both projects there was a small exolicit women's component, supporting three programs which were already ooerational and expanding thern co include famil:. planning elements. The three programs were Women's Cocoeratives, Mothers' Cl bs and Women's Vocacional Training. The projec: support was under:aken w- h a view to raising the soc-o-economic scatus or women .rd to making t-em more receptive to the small family noorm. The three schemes coverz :.arious target groups and geogrannic areas. Once incorporated into :he ?oDulacton Projects, the women's programs became pilot proiec:s 3angladesh's multisectoral population B.thin program anc were c;ordinazed by che ?_FPD. They also becar.e acccuntaDbe to the Government's Plann;ng Commission for the efficient use of develop- ment funds and 'or their Derformnance in terms of stated family planning targets. In the Second ?rniect, a total of USS7 million was allocatec -:c these three women's programs or about 6 percent o. the to:.al Pro4ect ccsts. Below,each of the three programs is described in some detail. -6- A. Women's Cooperatives of che Inteerated Rural Develo=nent Program The Women's Cooperatives are a program of the Integrated Rural Develop-ent Program (T.QD?) of the Ministry of Local Govern=enc, Rural Development and Cooperatives. IRD? is active in over 200 of the 473 thanas in 3angladesh wtere its village cooperatives and thana-level insticutions represent virtually ti-e only rural service infrastructure. IRDP officials it the thana ar.d district levels support the ;omen's projects as integral parts of their programs. In each thana where :he women's program is working, :here ire three fe-ale staff: a deputy project officer, appointed bv IRDP aeadquarcers, and two inspectresses. Deputy project officers (who must be college graduates) have overall responsiblity for program supervision at the thana level. Inspectresses are recruited and hired locally. They work at the village level to motivate wo:en tc organize and supervise Cooperatives. At the thana office, inspectresses organi:e training for rural wcmen and assifs in channeling inputs and services tc Cccperative!.. inspectresses are required to have compleced high school education but often have inter.ediate degrees. Women's Cooperatives provide rural women with direct access to small credits, extension education and agricultu-ai inputs. To join a villaze cooperat-ve soclety, a 3oman must acquire at least one share (T.il0 = :SS.63) of scc4ety capital. Active members ace .'xpected to make further srmall savin&s deposits and to attend ueekl- socie:y meetings. IRD? Women's Cooperatives differ from those for men in that "share capital" acquired by =e=bers is not usually used for capital investment in cocpe-ativelv c%;ned facilities. Rather, women save cooperatively but use their credits for individual investments. Women's economic activities are limited in scale by a relatively low ceiling on individual credits. Credits are available to Cooperative members in amounts ranging from Tk25 to TkSOO (US$1.56 to USS31.25) for a duration or six to twelve months. Handling 'ees and interest bring credit charges to no =ore than 12 percent p.a. which is very low compared to the usurious rates charged bv local money lenders. Credit applications =ust be based on a production plan and are approved by thana authorities for village cooperative sociecies as a whole. Societies only becc-e eligible for a new loan once all individual loans from an earlier :ranche have seen repaid. Peer .ressure generated by this policy has kenc default rates below ten oprcent so that Women's Cooperatives, more than men's, are very good credit risks. The extension education element of the Women's Cooperatives Program is organized on a two-tier model. Managers and two other represen:acives of village czooerative societies ittend weekly training sessions at Thana Training and Development Centers. These leaders, who receive travel expenses or an honorarium for their involvement, are, in turn, exaected to pass on their kncwledge to other Caoperative members a; -weekly Coooerati-:e meetinas. This training builds on skills and abilities which women alreado have such as poulttr, raising, small animal husbandry, kitcnen gardening and handicrafrs. The scope of these -7- income-generating activities is limited hy lack of resources and lim:ted access to markets, and current programs address these particular constraints. Thie family planning aspects of the Women's Cooperatives under- taken as a result of the Population Project involve Cooperatives' staff with PCFPD field staff in arranging for education and services. The idea is that, as a group activiLy, family planning is less sensitive and possibly safer since the Women's Cooperatives can gain information about options in contraception and obtain contraceptive re-supplies or referrals for medical procedures. The Women's Cooperatives have been purposefully organized to include women from across socio-economic classes. The philosophy has been that by getting better-off wo=en involved in work, the onus against work for woren will be lessened. This approach txtends to the use of family planning services as well. The IRD? women's pro- gram also offers nutrition education, primary health care and adult literacy training in collaboration with other Government services or communi:y orzanizations. These serve further to integrate family planning activities with other aspects of women's lives whi:h affect their status and opportunities. Under the First Project, activities were initially planned for a three and one half year period which actually extended from September 1975 to July 1930. IRD? had planned to establish 19O Wooen's Cooperacives in 193 thanas, but was able to surpass this target when addit'onal funds were committed for the women's program due to a devaluation of the taka in 1977. By July 1930, IRDP had escablished 746 village CooFeratives wi:h a total membership of 31,200 women. Share capital and savings averaged Tk6O per member. One million, nine hundred thousand taka had been disbursed iiismall credits, bene- fiting about 25 percent of the membership. Eleven thousand women had started income-generating proiects, mainly in agricultural activities. Three thousand and six hundred women Cooperative leaders were taking weekly or monthly training classes at Thana Training and Development Centers. Snecialized training had been giver to 1,700 women in a number of skills including tailoring, dtuck raising, horciculture, pond fish cultivation, basic health, adult literacy and simple accounting. About 30 rercent of members were estimated to ne current users of contra- ception. Under the Second Project, 1930/81 to 1983/3', the IRD? women's program plans to expand its coverage to 1,200 scciecies in L0 thanas. R. Social 'ielfare Mothers' Club The second w-cmen's coLmponent o: 'the ?opulazion ?roiects i'sthe Mothers' Clubs program. It is part of the Social 'elfare Department's Rural Social Service ?roject for disadvantaged rural groups which include women without resources, the landless, out-cf-school youth, children and the e'derly. In consultation ith vl.1age czmmittees, the Rural Social Ser-:ice Project seeks to stimulate self-help act:vities within co-= uni::ies and to identify target groups and needs. -8- The Rural Social Service Project has a staff of mostly male thana Social Welfare Officers with university degerees in social welfare or social work and of male and female village social workers with inter- mediate or secondary education. The village social worl:ers receive three months' pre-service training in co=ntunity development, aon-fo-=al educacion, maternal and child health, nutrition and family planning. Mothers' Clubs are organized to promote women's income generating activities and ti offer functional education and family planning informa- tion and services. They meet in donated premises and are open several afternoons each week. Social Welfare Motheis' Clubs are intended to serve the very poorest. Villag: social workers conduct household surveys and are given clear cr':eria for eligibility zo Rural Social Service ,rograms. In practice, the very poorest of rural women may simply not be able to attend. Mothers' Clubs function both as work-shops and as social centers. Village social workers w.to play a facili.at;ng role can, at tneir discrecion, allocate small -rants to procure equipment and to set up revolving funds for the purchase of materials. Skill training is offered by part-ti=e trade instructors who are recruited locally for a modest fee and who teach mainly handicrafts and -nedle work. Assistance is also available in kitchen gardening, ponlt * raising or other agrobased activities. The Clubs procure materials and help with marketing while the women produce for their own account. The charges for materials enable Clubs to increase their revolving funds. Encouraged by IRDP experience, Mothers' Clubs have added a small credit program. Family planning is one important focus of the Mothers' Clutbs. Upon completion of the First Project, there were 760 Mothers' Clubs which reported 36,000 family planning acceptors recruited among =e=bers and other rural women. Among Club members about 30 pe.cent had accepted famfly planning. In an early evaluation report, Club members were found to be nore likely than other village w;omen to have useful skills and to be actively using the-n to earn inco-es. They were also more fa=iliar with some aspects of family health and more likely to be current users of contraception. LUnder the Second Project it is planned that 840 Clubs will be organized in 21 new thanas and nutrition programs will be organized in 190 of the existing Clubs. C. Women's Vocatiow.r .Laining of the Bangladesh Women's Rehabilitation and .;elfare Foundation The hird wo=en's program supported by the Population Projects is the W'omen's VoLational Training Program of the Bang: idesh Women's .4ehabili- tation and 'welfare Foundation. The BW,RWF was established ia 1972 to help -omen . were lec't destitute after the indenendence war to become self- supporting. After the post-war period, the Foundation continued its professional and voca.tional training programs to serve widows, di:orced or deserted women and women otherwise in distress and their dependents. -9- The Foundation runs a vocational craining program in 34 cenrerr, usualiy located in the ad:zinis:racive caoitals c` districts and subaivi- sions. The centers offer training in a -wide variety of traces. Theso include gar-ent making; embroilery; weaving; cane, bamboo ans: jute handicrafts leather and plastic work; jam and confectionar. ?reparatiou; light agriculture and poultry raising. The choice of production line depends on the local availabili.ty cr skilled instructors, ra-w materials and marketing possibilities. .rainees receive a s=.ll stipend and are generally trained in two trades, one involving machinery and one -mnual. Some gender restrictions re=ain in the train'ing, owever. In handlaoo weaving, for instance, which is t.e bcst developed trade in the program, wo=en workers learn to perfcr.- only repetitive, manual casks while the organization of production, mainteaance of equip:.enc, materials pro- curement and marketing re-ain in te hands of the (=ale) trademasters or salaried professional staff. 7.aining is, in principle, intended to prepare wcmen tor outside e:plJ-=ent thouSh a small nu=btr c' cc=petent workers is retained az productic- sections attached to the training centers. Under tne First Pcpulation ?rojecc, addItional centers w;re opened by the F-;undacion. Thes' had a mcre ambitious approach, extendin- wo:-er's vccaci training to r-.ral areas by opening 32 rural satellite centers in addtL'n-n to 8 ne- thana centers. Train.n; was ex.ended at both the thana and satellite centers so that ad:lt literacy, functional edtucation and chi:.!-care ccu'.d .e ircluded. Training '5as conducted in stages: successful trainees frc= th.ana centers were to be e=mloved as trainers at rural satellite ce..:ers and skillea trainees troa rura_ centers were to practice thei-r tr.-des at Xothers' Clubs or in IRD? Women's Cooperative-. To run the training progra, full-t'-e organizers assisted by two field assistants were aDDoo:nea to each thana center. Rural satellite centers -were each run by a fu'l-t.-e field super-;isor. The women in training ac the Vocational Centers are very hetero- geneous in ter-s o.. aze, mari:al status a:.d -ducational back2gound. About 25 percent are married women of reprc-'u=tive aze. Thus, family planning motivation ai=s primarl'ly at wc=en outside -t-e training _en:ers. Trainees are obliged to recruc fa:ai±y 7iannnig acceptors in the course ot their training. They report, uns.r.s_g7-- that :t-h.-eet t:eir cuotas. rurther- more, having zonoleced their :rain.ng, sk.`lled women; returning to pro- ductive activities and econcmic sezurity in ::.eir cw. villages, were ex:ec-ed to beco-.e local c2inion leaders whcse influent:_al s.atus and active promotion of family iar.n:-ng wculd h.elp to change attitudes and increase family planning acceclnze. 3y Jul:' 1980, t..e Fo_ndation had trai-ed 3,L'0 wo-en. Seventv-six cooperatives had been .or-ed to assist c:ained :o=en in or anizing produc:e activirtes. ?.ecor^'s in :he e=o!oNent stazts c` tra_ned w-.=en have not been kent. Trainees remor:ed t::at :hey '-ad recru--ed 5A,000 fa_'ly: planning accepctors. -10- Women's Vocational Training appears to be successful in reaching the very poorest woren. It e-:eztively ser-es th.e o_-en who are cc:ualIy retained in e=plcv.=ent at the centers themselves, chough the,. wor.cn generally earn only subsistence level incomes. Newly trained women have not been absorbed, as planned, into the !RD? Cooperatives and Mothers' Clubs, and the 3BWGIT has no: on its own established an adequate follcrr-ap or placement system for its trainees. Women leaving the centers, there- fore, ha.': no assurance of f'nding employment in the areas in which they have been trained. IV. Project ?erformance The operational ob5ectives of the wocen's components of the Population and Fazily Health ?rojects were stated priLmarily in ters cf family planning target- and of escablishing the required infrastructure to carry out the program. In t-ese ter-s all three .rograms net cr exceeded their tar;ets. Cri:eria for women's economic activicies were, on the other hand, not estaLlizhed in advance and exDecta.tions of the coverage and specifIc results of the furctional education programs were not stated concrecely. *Terefore, these aspects of the projec: per'or-ance received onlv uneven actertion in project mcnitoring and reporting. In their aifferen: settings and with varying degrees of o=en's progra-s sought to combine train-ing emphasis, all three of the .- and assistance .or income Seneratin3 activitIes w*th literacy :r1inin;, family planning, nutrition and basic health care. cu'l covrrage was achieved only for fanily planning which with the ?cpulation Projects became an integral part of prcgram objectives. A. Geo2raohic Coverace and Ccordinztion Under both the Firs: and Second Projects, program thanas omen's components were dispersed throu;hout Bangladesh. for the -. This pattern was adopted .:th a view cowards ulim-ate country-wide replication of che three pilot aoproacnes. Tnis has, howe,er, made supervision and technical svpport of field operations difficult. Because of the ?C7?D's rola in th.e in d2nart=en:a1 coordination ot family planni--g ac:ivities, t.: - pulation Projects made no specific provisions for cocrdir.aicin amcng the .O=en's ccDoon- ents. As a result, the th:ee women's pragr--s coor_i_nace moscly .- .:.e negative, through avoidance c- each ocher'; :erri:ories. T-e three orog;a-ns have become increasi:;ly si.lar dcring project i=p,e=enca:.on., but there have been few co.nsula:ao.ons on prozra- 3:iategies and on:y inzidental exchanges o. techni_ai iniorma:'_n. the foreseen co:rp1e=en_ar- itv betwee:l the Vocactonal :raini. ard the a3:o'.icao.'n of :his train.ng to Mothers' CluDs and -;men's Cooneratives h-as nct ma:crial'zed. 3. Marketlna .n t:.e economic sohere. handicraf:s produc:icn in the women's componen:s is e:oeriencing =arketing proole=s. Difficulties arise because of insufficient quali:y controi. lac4 or at:rac:ive desIgns. and the absence of initia:::e and business skills on che par: o. field scaff who -were hired -.ainlv `or administrative cualifications. -11- Under the Second ?roject, a central service unit was established within the Population Control and Family ?lanning Division to assist all three components with market surveys, design and quality control. Since the work of the proposed unit is not directly related to fa-mily planning concerns, it has never had suf.icienc priorizy within the PCF?D. Further- more, because of the coordination problems discussed above, ;he common service unit has not had the united support of the three comoonents which It was intended to serve. On local markets, agrobased household production has a stable, aut not unlimited, demarnd. ?resent recurns as reported in illustrative accounts of enterprises by individual women in the Population ?rojects are quite high. These could, hoever, decrease if the present pilot projectc are scaled up so thac supplies of goods increase significantly. In all three programs, the economic aspect faces another problem. Procurement and marketing, quality control and design adjust- ments necessitate overhead coszs which are high in relation co the value of the goods pro'u-cd. For the women's programs, these service functions are, to a large ex.ent, absorbed into che oDerating costs of the program infrastructure and are not charged to the prices of the goods produced by the women. These goods procuced under the auspices of the women's programs, thurefore, reach markets at subsidized prices. C. Procrai Costs Upon completion of the First ?roject in =id-1980, about USS976,000 had been expended for Wo=en's Coooeratives, USS452,C00 for Mothers' Clubs and US$534,003 for Women's Vocational Training. For the Secor,d Project, cost escimates at aopraisal were US$2,387,000 for CooTera tives, USS3,120,UQO for Mothers' Clubs and USS1,628,C00 for Vocational Training, but ac:ual allocations may be much lower, due to an ongoing reexamination cf all developmenc expenditures by the Planning Co_ission. Cost estimates and exDenditures under the Population ?rojecrs do not ieflect total assis:ance needs. All three components have bene- fitted from other past or ongoing exter-nal assistance to wmc=en's develop- ment activities in BangLz sh. L;NiTC77, LSAID and several NGOs and mission groups are suppo *g labor saving or productivity raising technology for wonen, func .onal education, primary health care, nutrition an~' child-weighing, feasibilicy and mar,:e.i.g studies for women's incc-e generating activities and =ar.ace=ent training for wom-en. This has 'Kept the program development costs of the wc=en s co=?oneht. law and has enabled IRD? and Social `elfare to adopt alreaJy existing program packages .or the'r supplementar- activtices. Each of the thrze components has, additio.-aliy, bee. able to obtain supplem.entary uunds from other resources. rRD? has had bilateral assistance rrom CTDA for program consultants, an evaluaticn a4viser and the preparaticn of a staf. training manual, c..d from ;IC_. for i:s primary neal:h care pilot project. :-:others' Clubs ha-ve jeen assisted ovr1'CCW. CARE and F?IA wth their nutrit'ion and credit nrogras and _:ith contraceptive suopp_es. -12- The Wo=en's Vocational Training Program is receiving support fro= a UNICEF/ILO experc te-m. During the First Project, technical assistance pro, istoas were kept to a minimum. This reflected a general Coverr-ert 2olicy and an assessment that the women's co-ponents would pose fej research cr develup=ent c.tallenges. In retrospect, this proved ar underesti- =ation which has been parrially remedied in the Second Pro)ect. A total of five person-years of adv'so.r- assistance was inIt_ded in cost estimates to strengthen the management and interral evaluation capac!cies of all three women's programs. D. Evaluaticn and Monitoring Impact evaluations of the women's co=ponents have beer, carried out, for the main part, by the External Evalua:tin Unit (=V) of th-e Government's Planning Comzission. -he EELU has ':,elf been receiving technical assistance under the ?opula:ion Projects. At the outset of the First Project, L!.e E--U was noc well equipped to produce research designs. Some initial i=?act evaluations were tF._s conducted pre- maturely, before extension staff^ and inputs had been in place for any length of ti=e. More recent EE'J studies have been co-.du:ed as process-oriented, observation studies which r,cz_s on oro4ec: manage=ent and on intermediace factors affecting program results. Evaluation studies are, however, designed uhou: consul:aticn with: the depart=ent concerned. As a result, program =amagers are more likely to question the validity of f'indings than to address proble=s identified bv the EEU. These co=unication Saps bet-een progra= administrators and evaluators hamper progra= fol-low-up. Routine perfor-ance statistics maintained by -women's -the programs are uneven, because though repcrcimg require=ents are extensive in theory, only a few reports are lZe!ng prepared on a consistent basis. Field units need more support the c=mpla:Ion cth and aggregation cf data. Reports primarIly cover program res-l:s, so that intermediate orograta manage-ent issuEs uch as availa2bil2 of inpurs, application of training and regulari:r o. surer.isio., are not adequately monitored. On fam !y planning, perfor--ance re,or:s are in terms of initial acceptance. Continuaztocn and dro?o-ut ra:es are not carefully reflected. Thc First and Second ?oDuiation ?ro'ec:s at:ached :.eir women's components to already existing progra=s for -:ne.. -ehid :t,is strategy .as the belief that population grorth is directly ccrrelated to the status and oDporzunities a: wo=en and :.:a=ity ,a-ni-g will be adopted by ;women who see its relat'onsht? to ot;er asoct:s ef cheir lies. Each of :the three wo-en's programs a:crac:eC -r.. wroen and surpassed its family planning tar.-at. -oes :..:s res:it: =-,an ta the assu=pcipons of the Projects were true a.d were :he ?roJec:s, th;ere- .ore, a success? -13- TABLE I DATA FOR THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF BANGLACESH Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144,000 sq. km. Population (Jan. 1978) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84.4 =illion Population density/sq.km. of agric. land . . . . . . . . . . 795 people Percent of population in rural areas . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 percent Percent of rural population that is landless . . . . . . . . 50 percent Birth rate/1000 (1978) . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Death race/1000 (1973) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Population growth rate (1978). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 percent Population growth raze (1951). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.0 percent Life expectancy (1980) .... . . ...... . . . . . . . 47 years Percent of total population below 15 years of age. . . . . . 46 percent Dependency racio (1973: Total population 14 years and below plus 65 and above divided by population 15-64 years).95 Percent of labor force in agriculture. . . . . . . . . . . . 77 percent Contribution of agriculture to gross domestic producc. . . . 55 percent Percent of land in rice cultivation. . . . . . . . . . . ... 80 percent Average income/capita (1973) ............... . USS91.00 Average income/capita of lowest quartile of population (1978) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . USS50.00 equals USS.14/day -14- TABLE II Bangladesh Exhibit ! Basic Indicators GNP per capita Average Average Average Life indcx of Area annual annual Adult expec- food produ. Popula- (thousands grocth rate of infla- literacy tancy at tion per tion of square (per- tion rate birth capita(196 (millions) kilo- Dollars cent) (percent) (percent) (years) 71=100) Mid-1978 meters) 1978 1960-78 1960-70 1970-78 1975 1978 1976-78 S4.7 144 90 -0.4 3.7 17.9 26 47 90 Growth of Production Averace Annual Growth Rate (percent) GDP A;riculture Industr: Manufacturine Services 1960-70 1970-78 1960-70 1'70-73 1960-70 1970-78 1950-70 1970-78 1960-70 1970-: 3.6 2.9 2.7 1.6 7.9 5.9 6.6 5.3 3.8 4.7 Structure of Production Distribution of eross domestic oroduct (oercent) Azriculture Industrv Xanufacturinz Serv-ices 1960 1978 1960 1978 (1960 1978) 1960 1978 61 57 8 13 6 8 31 30 Balance of Pavnents and Debt Servize Ratios Current account balance before Interest interest pavments pa,_ents on Debt service as Dercentaee of: on external public ex:ernal public Exports of debt debt good- and (millions of dollars) (='llions of dollars) GNP services 1970 1978 1970 1978 1970 1978 1970 1978 -302 .. 42 .. 1.3 .. 11.7 Labor Force Percentage of population of Average annual growth working age Percen:tce of labor force in: of labor force (15-64 vears) Azricu1turc 1ndus:r7 Services (percent) i960 1978 1960 i978 1960 1978 1960 1978 1960-70 1970-80 1980-2000 53 54 87 ,4 3 11 10 15 2.5 2.4 2.5 -15- TABLE II Bangladesh Exhibit 1 (cont.; Education Number Number enrolled in enrolled in secondary higher education Adult Number enrolled in primary school school as as percentage literacy as percentage of a e group percentage of of population rate Total Male Female age group aced 20-24 (percent) 1960 1977 1960 1977 1960 1977 :960 1977 1960 1976 1960 1975 47 81 66 103 26 58 8 23 1 2 22 26 Health-related Indicators Percentage Daily calorie supply of population per capita PoDulation Der: with access As percer-age Phvsic.ian Nursing person to safe water Total of requirement 1960 1977 1960 1977 1975 1977 1977 9,260 .. 42,080 53 1,812 78 Life Expectancv Life Infant Child expectancy mortality death at birth rate rate (vears) (azed 0-1) (aged 1-4) 1960 1978 1960 1973 1960 1978 40 47 .. 139 29 23 De=ozraphic and Fertilitv-related Indicators Crude birth Crude death Percentage Percentage of Percen:age of rate per rate per change in: Total women in repro- -arried vo=er chousand thc-and Crude bir.h Crude death fertility ductive age group? using contra- oonulation population rate rate rate (aged 15-44) centives 1960 1978 1960 1978 1960-78 1560-78 1978 1978 1970 1977 51 46 25 18 -9.8 -28.0 6.1 45 .. 9 Pooulation Growth, Past and Froiected. and Hvoothetical Stationarv Pcoilation Average annual k.pochetical growth of Projected size of Assumed year Year of population population stationary of reaching net reaching (percent) (millions) population reproduction stationarv :960-70 197G-78 1980 200C (millions) rate or 1 aooulation 2.5 2.7 89 143 314 2035 2160 Table [II WOMEN'S PROGRA?M TARGETS ANI) ACIIIEVEMENTS OF FIRST PROJECT AND PROI'OSED TARGET FOR SECOND PROJECT FLrst 1'rolect Target 1Frst Project Aclhievemenit Second Project Target. Clubs Clubs Acceptors Clubs Co-ops Mem- Co-ops Mem- of Family Co-ops Mem- litsL I tut lol Objective Thanas Centers bers Thanas Centers bers PI anriniIg Thanas Centers her MotIhers ' Departmcnt t'I'o provide Club)s of Social short-tern WelZjre- tr.ulners Hura I wiLt little Sockil calitCl for Services I nimtd late retliri) to resource:- I e!: wouien. 19 760 20,000 19 750 26,400 19,600 40 1,600 48,000 WuincW'u IitegraLed Ir,) develoup a Coopera- Rural vii l;ge-baused ILves Development 1uotiLtuLion of I'rojgranmies weillicti to elLnible under H i nlI- t 11 Lo aLt tt in t rLly of I icrwuuledIti RK ra I D)ev- econ)uioI Ic e I olllicit, Ip I'1 i ipat ic: L.oc al Gov- luiudl tSocil a elzihllunit, iaid I ittivpuiudeticu (ooperat iVesN. th ouIrh Im pr.aved ucceis Li' gtuvurninnent: I :11111' ptv:Itu u"liCicuti. 19 190 5,700 25 500 18,000 9.600 40 1,200 48,000 VucaLloiuial Womuea 's Tti prov ide lg Tral in Rulb I II - proifewilonal Ceni.ers tL.t hiu tiLanklard a: f alinI WeI f ire t r ni iig I g FoidIa Li oil on p rodta t Icon Ilildul otuf ilhskutiblio W,,lll.l'tl prodtie Lti. A I ,)I t i-t hIvlLII o 8 40 4,880 8 a 40 2,400 45,000 20 100 6,1]20