Coalition for Advancing Equality and Justice formed
Seven leading national and international organisations have formed a Coalition for Advancing Equality and Justice, a countrywide platform committed to ensuring that the rights, protection, and wellbeing of women and children take centre stage in political party election manifestos, says a press release.
The coalition includes Breaking the Silence, JAAGO Foundation, Manusher Jonno Foundation, Oxfam in Bangladesh, Plan International Bangladesh, Save the Children in Bangladesh, and WaterAid Bangladesh.The coalition has currently been conducting regional consultations, evidence reviews, and community-level listening sessions to understand the needs and priorities of women and children across urban, rural, and climate-vulnerable areas.
Findings from these consultations, along with insights from the coalition’s initial position paper, will inform a set of concrete demands that will be presented at a high-level dialogue with political parties on 14 December in Dhaka.
“This coalition has been formed to ensure that the voices, struggles, and aspirations of Bangladesh’s majority population, women and children are not sidelined once again in political commitments,” the members stated.
Bangladesh is navigating a transition under the interim government for a national election in February 2025, according to the current government. Election manifestos drafted during such periods shape not only political agendas but also budget allocations, service delivery priorities, public investment, and long-term development pathways.
Women make up 50.8% of Bangladesh’s population (World Bank, 2023) and children 33% (UNICEF, 2023), yet their needs remain weakly reflected in political commitments. Persistent vulnerabilities, gender-based violence, early marriage, learning poverty, malnutrition, unsafe migration, and climate risks—continue across regions, including Bangladesh.
The VAW Survey 2024 (BBS & UNFPA) shows 70% of ever-married women suffered intimate partner violence. Bangladesh also has Asia’s highest child-marriage prevalence at 51.4% (UNICEF, UN Women, Plan International, 2023). Children in slums, chars, and coastal zones face heightened deprivation in health, education, and protection, with disabled children disproportionately excluded.
Most importantly, Bangladesh’s climate crisis is alarming, with projections estimating around 19 million internal climate migrants by 2050 (World Bank, Groundswell Report, 2021). Women and children are at the highest risk.
Early consultations and evidence reviews reveal five priority areas needing urgent political commitment: Education, Health and Nutrition, Protection Climate Vulnerability, Diversity & Inclusion and WASH.
Members of the coalitions stated, “Political leaders must recognise that the wellbeing of women and children is not a peripheral agenda it is the foundation of a just, resilient, and future-ready nation.”
They urge all political parties to demonstrate leadership by committing to evidence-based, adequately financed, and inclusive policies that respond to the lived realities of women and children.