Gender, Governance, Rights & Social Protection
Real development is impossible without justice, dignity, and equal rights. Since 1987, VOSD has been working to advance women’s empowerment, protect the rights of the vulnerable, strengthen local governance, provide legal awareness and aid, and rehabilitate families devastated by disasters. Our work ensures that the poorest and most excluded people in Bangladesh can claim their rightful place in society.
Women in Development / Gender
Empowering women is central to everything we do
VOSD does not treat women’s development as a separate program – it is woven into the fabric of every single activity we carry out. We firmly believe that sustainable development is impossible without the full and equal participation of women. This is why, since our establishment in 1987, women and children have been at the very heart of our mission.
Today, 95% of our beneficiaries are women and children, and approximately 90% of all our development programs are planned, implemented, and managed by women beneficiaries themselves. This reflects our philosophy that women are not just recipients of development – they are its leaders, drivers, and decision-makers.
Every one of our programs – from savings groups to skills training, from health services to environmental action – begins with a gender-sensitive lens. We consistently prioritize gender balance, and in most cases, we have been able to maintain or exceed it. Our field teams receive continuous orientation on gender sensitivity, and our community mobilization efforts intentionally place women in leadership roles within all groups and committees.
Over the past three decades, the results speak for themselves: women who once had no say in their households now run businesses, hold positions on local committees, advocate for their children’s education, and inspire other women in their communities to demand more from life. This is the true meaning of women’s empowerment – and VOSD remains deeply committed to expanding it further.
VGD Women Training & Rehabilitation
From relief recipients to self-reliant entrepreneurs
VOSD has been a leading implementing partner of the Government of Bangladesh’s Vulnerable Group Development (VGD) Program, a flagship social safety net initiative designed for the poorest and most vulnerable women in the country. The VGD program provides essential support to women who have no means of income and no assets – giving them not just survival support, but a real pathway to economic independence.
Our earliest VGD engagement was with WDA/WFP for 9,500 VGD women in Chandpur District, covering 8 Upazillas. Building on that success, we have continued implementing the VGD/ICVGD program supported by the Department of Women Affairs (DWA). We also implemented a major project with NNP and the World Bank for 10,500 VGD women across Barisal, Jhalakathi, and Barguna districts, covering 10 Upazillas.
Our work with VGD women goes far beyond the government’s safety net. We provide five different types of training courses covering management skills, leadership development, primary health care (PHC), and professional skills development in trades such as sewing, poultry rearing, and handicrafts. After training, VOSD provides micro-credit support to help these women start their own income-generating activities – enabling them to truly rehabilitate themselves and become self-reliant.
So far, VOSD has trained and supported over 15,700 VGD women, many of whom have moved from being the poorest and most dependent members of their communities to becoming successful micro-entrepreneurs, farmers, and shop owners.
Good Governance Program
Building transparent, accountable local institutions
Good governance is the bedrock of equitable development. Since 1990, VOSD has been working to strengthen local governance structures across our working areas – ensuring that public institutions are transparent, accountable, and responsive to the needs of ordinary citizens, especially the poor and marginalized.
Our work in this area has been formally recognized by the World Bank, which provided direct support to VOSD for good governance development from January 2002. Through this program, we have implemented awareness building, motivation, training, workshops, and seminars with a wide range of stakeholders – including Union Parishad (UP) members, local elected leaders, community elites, social leaders, and group leaders.
A key focus of our work is making local government institutions – particularly Union Parishads — more accessible and accountable to women, the poor, and marginalized groups. We train UP members on participatory budgeting, transparent decision-making, and gender-responsive governance. We also help communities understand their rights and how to engage constructively with local government.
The impact has been significant: communities where VOSD operates now have more informed citizens, more responsive local leaders, and better-functioning public services. People have learned that governance is not something done to them – it is something they can influence and shape.
Legal Education & Human Rights Program
Teaching communities to know and claim their rights
Poor and marginalized people in Bangladesh often suffer injustice not because the law fails to protect them, but because they do not know their rights or how to claim them. VOSD’s Legal Education and Human Rights Program – operational since 1987 – is designed to bridge this knowledge gap and empower communities to defend their rights.
Our approach is built on a powerful multiplier model. Rather than providing one-time legal aid, we develop legal cadres and human rights cadres within the community. These trained individuals – drawn from our group members and community volunteers – become local champions who can continuously educate their peers about legal rights, human rights, and available remedies for injustice.
We work with a broad range of stakeholders including Union Parishad members, local leaders, community elites, social leaders, and group leaders. Training workshops and seminars cover topics such as land rights, family law, inheritance rights, protection against domestic violence, child rights, and access to government services and entitlements.
Thanks to this program, community members across our working areas have become aware of their legal rights and are actively trying to realize them. Women in particular have been empowered to speak out against discrimination and violence, and to demand their rightful share of family property and inheritance. The impact extends beyond individuals, strengthening the entire community’s ability to hold institutions accountable.
Rural Housing Activities
Building safe homes for families devastated by disasters
Most of VOSD’s project areas are highly disaster-prone. Every year, families lose their homes and land to river erosion, floods, cyclones, and tidal bores. For these families, a house is more than shelter, it is the foundation on which they rebuild their entire lives.
Since 1988, VOSD has been implementing a comprehensive rural housing program with the support of partners including Voluntary Health Services Society (VHSS), CONCERN-Bangladesh, UNDP, CDMP/DFID/UNDP, ICCO-Netherlands, the Indian High Commission, and Bangladesh Bank.
Our approach combines rehabilitation grants for the most vulnerable families with long-term loans for households capable of repayment. Through CONCERN-Bangladesh, we have built 3,500 low-cost houses for poor flood-affected families. With the support of UNDP, we have built another 1,972 houses, and with support from the Indian High Commission, we have built 750 more houses. Finally, we have provided long-term housing loans to 750 families through Bangladesh Bank.
In total, our program has provided safe, dignified housing to over 6,972 families. Each house is built with disaster-resistant materials and designs, ensuring that families are better protected when the next flood, cyclone, or tidal bore hits.
Resettlement Program
Rebuilding lives after the waters have taken everything
In the disaster-prone regions of southern Bangladesh, thousands of families lose their homes, land, and belonging every single year. River erosion, floods, tidal bores, and cyclones routinely turn settled families into homeless refugees overnight – stripping them not just of their property, but of their place in the community and their sense of identity.
VOSD’s Resettlement Program is designed to give these displaced families a genuine second chance. Working with a range of government and non-government partners, we relocate and resettle families who have lost everything, providing them not only with new land and housing, but also with access to livelihoods, healthcare, education, and social safety nets.
Our resettlement work is especially focused on the char and coastal areas where land erosion is most severe. These communities are on the frontlines of climate change, and the resettlement work VOSD does provides a dignified path forward for families who would otherwise have no option but to migrate to urban slums.
So far, VOSD has successfully resettled approximately 750 families in the char and coastal areas. Our work continues, and we are committed to expanding this program as the impacts of climate change push more families into displacement.
Standing Up for Rights, Dignity & Justice
From empowering women leaders to rebuilding homes for disaster-displaced families, VOSD is working to ensure that every person – no matter how poor or marginalized – can live with dignity and claim their rightful place in society. Join us in this mission.