Trafficking: Top Thai army officer surrenders

A top army officer of Thailand, Lt General Manas Khongpaen, has turned himself in days after a Thai provincial court allowed police to arrest him over his alleged involvement in trafficking of Rohingyas and other boatpeople, The Guardian reports.
Surrender of Manas, who is facing multiple charges including human trafficking, detention and ransom, marks the first arrest of a military official since start of investigation in May in the Southeast Asia human trafficking disaster, according to the British newspaper.
Over 50 people, including several local politicians and officials, were arrested after the discovery of dozens of bodies believed to be those of Burmese Rohingya migrants at the abandoned trafficking camps near the Thai-Malaysian border.
Manas denied the charges, National police chief General Somyot Poompanmoung said today.
Before Manas’s arrest warrant was issued this week the army chief had denied the military’s involvement in the trafficking syndicates.

Convicted OC Helal sent to jail

A Dhaka court on Sunday sent Helal Uddin, former officer-in-charge of Khilgaon Police Station in the capital, to jail on his surrender in a case filed on a charge of torturing Dhaka University student Abdul Kader.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Alamgir Kabir Raj passed the order after the former police officer surrendered before the court and sought bail in the case.

On May 17, the same court sentenced Helal to three years’ imprisonment and fined him Tk 10,000, in default, to suffer three months more in prison.

According to the case document, Abdul Kader, a student of biochemistry and molecular biology, was detained in Segunbagicha area of the capital on a charge of robbery.

The student was arrested when he was returning to his Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall from his relative’s house at Eskaton on July 16, 2011.

Later, OC Helal took him to his office room and beat up Kader severely to make a confessional statement a false case.

After arresting Kader, the police implicated him in two cases -- one for robbery and another for possession of an illegal firearm -- with Khilgaon Police Station, and also showed him arrested in another false case filed with Mohammadpur Police Station for carjacking.

But following media outcry, the High Court on July 28 ordered the inspector-general of police to investigate the incident.

DU teachers and students and people from different walks of life reacted sharply to the police torture on Kader, then a master’s student of biochemistry.

Later, three officials of Khilgaon Police Station, including OC Helaluddin, were suspended and Kader was released on bail on August 3, 2011.

Kader, now a lecturer of Laxmipur Govt. Mohila College, was acquitted of all charges in 2012. On January 23, 2012, he sued OC Helaluddin for torturing him in line with recommendations by a probe committee of the law ministry and a High Court order.

Khaleda distributes food on Zia’s death anniversary

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Sunday distributed food among the destitute in different places of the capital for the second day, marking the 34th death anniversary of slain President Ziaur Rahman.

She also inaugurated a photo exhibition on the life and works of BNP founder Ziaur Rahman.

Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, student wing of the BNP, organised the exhibition at the auditorium of the National Press Club, marking the death anniversary of Ziaur Rahman.

JCD President Rajib Ahsan, General Secretary Akramul Hasan and other leaders and activists were present.

Around 11.30am, she started distributing cocked food among the poor and destitute in front of Gulshan DCC Market.

Later, she distributed food in Mohakhali, Shaheenbagh, Mohakhali, the National Press Club, CR Dutta Road, Gabtali, Mirpur Shah Ali Mazar, Mirpur-11, Shewrapara and Uttara Amir Complex areas.

BNP leaders Selima Rahman, Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel and other leaders and activists accompanied Khaleda Zia during the food distribution.

Meanwhile, BNP leaders alleged that police destroyed a stage set up for distributing food in front of Gulshan DCC Market.

The BNP and front organisations chalked up a 14-day programme to observe the death anniversary of the party founder that began on Saturday. Khaleda Zia distributed cocked food on the day.

Clean Dhaka to be visible in 6 months: Annisul

The capital, Dhaka, will emerge as a completely clean city in next two and half years, the mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation said today.
“A visible change will be there in next six months,” Mayor Annisul Huq said while inaugurating an awareness rally for a special cleanliness campaign in the city’s Farmgate area today.
“But we need complete public support to achieve the goal,” the mayor said.
Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) organised the special cleanliness campaign rally to raise public awareness to stop littering here and there with the slogan “Gomi Zero” in keeping with the Japanese campaign against wastes.
The Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) also arranged the same awareness campaign in its part of the city.
The word Gomi stands for garbage in Japanese. It also means 5 (Go), the month of May and 3 (Mi), a date. So, Gomi zero together symbolises 30th May, the day of public campaign for zero waste across Japan.
The city corporation officials called upon the city dwellers to keep the city and their homes clean by refraining from throwing waste on the roads and drains and help practice 3Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle -- method in waste management.   

Asked how the campaign will be successful with hardly any waste bins kept at public places across Dhaka, the DNCC chief executive officer BM Enamul Haque said, “We cannot maintain the bins, as urchins and petty thief take them away.” 

Indian cabinet okays human trafficking, coastal shipping deals ahead of Modi’s Dhaka visit

The Indian cabinet today approved two separate agreements, to be signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Dhaka next week, to fight human trafficking and introduce coastal shipping service with Bangladesh.
The Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, approved the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on prevention of human trafficking especially trafficking in women and children.
"Human trafficking has emerged as a big problem. The MoU is an effort in the direction of preventing trafficking," Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters after the cabinet meeting.
An official statement said the MoU will help strengthen cooperation to prevent all forms of the human trafficking, especially that of women and children and ensure speedy investigation and prosecution of traffickers and organised crime syndicates in both the neighbouring nations.
The pact will also ensure repatriation of victims as expeditiously as possible. After repatriation, the home country will undertake the safe and effective reintegration of the victims with their families, the statement said.
A task force of India and Bangladesh was constituted to take coordinated action against individuals, touts and agents involved in human trafficking and meetings of the group. The task force has met four times so far.
During the fourth meeting of the Task Force held in Mumbai on April 6 and 7 last year, both sides finalised the text of the draft MoU on prevention of human trafficking, the statement pointed out. 

The Cabinet also cleared the agreement on coastal shipping between India and Bangladesh for movement of goods between the two countries.
Indian ports serving as trans-shipment points for Bangladeshi cargo will benefit by greater volume as a result of Indo-Bangladesh coastal trade, the statement said, adding that both the nations shall treat each other’s vessels as it would have done to its national vessels used in international sea transportation.
"Exim trade between India and Bangladesh would be benefited by way of reduction in freight charges. It will also improve the utilisation of port capacities of Indian ports and open up new opportunity for Indian coastal vessels. It will also help in decongestion of roads especially at land custom stations/integrated check posts at the Indo-Bangladesh border," the statement said.
Currently, there is no significant cargo movement between the sea ports of Bangladesh and India as it is not profitable for the big ocean going vessels to operate between the ports of the two countries.
Therefore, to reduce the cost of shipping operations, a lower but pragmatic standard of vessel known as River Sea Vessel (RSV) has been prescribed for coastal shipping.
The RSV category has significantly lower construction and operation costs without compromising on safety. For Indo-Bangladesh coastal shipping, the RSV category of vessel has been agreed upon by both the countries.
India's trade with Bangladesh has grown rapidly during the past few years. Bangladesh is now India's largest trade partner in South Asia.
The opening up of the coastal route between India and Bangladesh is expected to provide an alternative route for the transportation of Exim cargo between the two countries. 

Modi compares land boundary deal with fall of Berlin Wall

Ahead of his visit to Dhaka next month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has compared the settling of the land boundary deal with Bangladesh as the fall of the Berlin Wall.
“We had settled the long pending land boundary issues with Bangladesh by taking all parties into confidence,” Modi said in an interview published in a local daily today, reports our New Delhi correspondent.
“The media has not realised this was a massive achievement and is talking of other issues. Had this been elsewhere in the world this would have been cited as an example as big as the fall of the Berlin Wall,” he added.
“The entire mood of our neighbourhood has changed dramatically because of our message of shared prosperity being implemented on the ground. Mine is practical and outcome-based diplomacy,” Modi told The Tribune.
Modi did not say anything when he was asked by the daily’s Editor-in-Chief Raj Chengappa: “You are visiting Bangladesh next week after resolving the border issue. Will there also be a deal on the sharing of Teesta waters?
Indian parliament had earlier this month unanimously passed a constitution amendment bill ratifying the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh, paving the way for its implementation that has been pending for 41 years.
Modi, accompanied by West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, will pay a two-day state visit to Bangladesh, his first on June 6 and 7 during which he will hold talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and call on President Mohd Abdul Hamid. 

Pakistan keen to forge closer ties with Belarus: PM Nawaz

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday held a meeting with President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, who started his two-day visit to Pakistan yesterday, reports Dawn.
During the meeting at the Prime Minister House, the premier extended condolences to President Lukashenko over the death of his mother two days ago, which was also the reason why the Belarusian president delayed his visit to Pakistan until May 28.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told President Lukashenko that Pakistan is keen to forge closer ties with Belarus in all fields including trade, economy, defence and culture.
“Your visit will act as a catalyst in developing strong political and economic relations between our two countries,” the premier told the Belarusian president.
The prime minister said he was pleased with the increased exchanges between the Pakistan and Belarus in the recent past and there was a need to further increase frequency of bilateral visits.
“We also need to encourage contacts between our parliamentarians as regular interaction among them is beneficial for creating an environment of cordiality and friendship between the two peoples,” the premier said.
He said the current bilateral trade between the two countries standing at $60 million is not commensurate with its potential and needs to be substantially increased.
“We need to establish close interaction between the respective chambers of commerce and industry as these will boost bilateral trade and investmen,” he told the visiting delegation.
Belarusian delegation attending the meeting included: Deputy Prime Minister Semashko Vladimir, Minister for Foreign Affairs Makei Vladimir, Assistant to the President Bryliov Valery, Head of National Academy of Science Gusakov Vladimir, Minister of Industry Vovk Vitaly, Minister of Agriculture Zayats Leonid, Head of the State Military Industrial Committee Gurulev Sergei, Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus Ermolovich Andrei, Director of Machinery Holding “Amcodor” Shakutin Aleksandr, Director of Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Miatlikov Mikhail, Dy Chairman Mogilev Regional Executive Committee Nekrashevich Viktor, Director of Belarusian Light Industry Concern Efimchik Nikolai, and Director of “Minsk Tractor Works” Domoteko Fedor.
Those attending the meeting from the Pakistan side included: Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir Khan, Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, Minister for Finance Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Minister for Information Pervaiz Rashid, Advisor to the prime minister on National Security Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi, Chairman Board of Investment Mifta Ismail, and Secretary Foreign Affairs Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry.
After delegation-level talks, the two sides held a joint press conference.
Addressing the press conference the prime minsiter said, “I am happy to be standing here with my distinguished visitor from the Republic of Belarus, President Alexander Lukashenko who is in Pakistan on the first ever Presidential visit from this beautiful country.”
“Belarus is an important country and we attach high importance to our bilateral relations with it. We greatly value the visit by the President and his high powered delegation,” he said.
He added, “We just concluded a very productive round of talks. We discussed our relations in all fields in particular, trade, industry, agriculture, investment, culture, education and people-to-people contacts. We agreed on several new initiatives.”
“We also agreed to intensify our inter-parliamentary relations and confirmed our willingness to strengthen cooperation in the fight against terrorism, extremism, narcotics, and human trafficking.”
The premier also divulged about the Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) signed between the two counties saying, “A few moments ago, we happily witnessed the signing of many important Agreements which will provide a structured framework for our future collaboration.”
Nawaz further said Pakistan provides excellent environment for foreign investors and that Pak-Belarus joint ventures in various sectors are on the horizon.
He thanked President Lukashenko for the invitation that he extended to the prime minister to visit Belarus.
“I am delighted to accept it and look forward to an early visit,” the premier said.
Earlier on Thursday, President Lukashenko was received by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at Nur Khan airbase upon his arrival in Islamabad on a two-day state visit on the invitation of President Mamnoon Hussain. This is the first visit by a Belarusian president to Pakistan.
On the first day of the President Lukashenko’s visit, Pakistan and Belarus vowed to build a broad-based, substantive and long-term relationship in all fields, including trade, economic, education, defence and culture.
President Hussain hosted a banquet in honour of his Belarusian counterpart.
During his meeting with the Belarusian leader followed by delegation-level talks, President Hussain said Pakistan valued its ties with Belarus and both countries enjoyed a warm and a cordial relationship.
Meanwhile, Sergei Gurulev, Chairman State Military Industrial Committee, Belarus, called on Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Rashad Mahmood and discussed matters relating to professional interest and mutual cooperation between the two armed forces.
According to the ISPR, the two agreed that there was great scope for cooperation in the field of defence industry.

AARONG MILK A Social Statement by itself

 Sabina must have realised very early on during her childhood that her life was going to be no walk in the park. Born unto a world of poverty, Sabina hardly ever had a childhood to begin with.
Dropping out of school at Grade-7, she found herself married off at only 14 years of age. Two kids later, Sabina and her day-labourer husband reached a point where they literally did not have enough money to survive.
As the closest milk collection point was far away from the community, it was tough for the producers to sell their milk and get a fair price. Sabina offered her help in this regard and since then, she has not looked back.
Sabina began with collecting and selling 10-15 litres of milk and has now gone on to selling 45-50 litres of milk per day. Along with this, she has also started a small cattle feed business to augment her income.

With a little help, Sabina climbed out of the unforgiving grip of poverty and now she uses her income to meet day to day expenditures along with planning a better future for her children.
Like Sabina, many others have benefitted from an industry that once faced many challenges. Previously, the dairy industry suffered greatly from a lack of established linkage between production, distribution and consumption.
Dairy farmers were not receiving fare prices and the breeds of cow in their farms would produce low quantities of milk. Then in 1998, BRAC Dairy was established to help dairy farmers overcome these problems.

What started as a social business soon became a brand, Aarong Dairy, to be reckoned with, one which soon gained the trust and respect that few business manage to gather. However, Aarong Dairy's reputation wasn't based just on the quality of their product but also the story present in every packet. For buying Aarong Dairy is akin to directly supporting a community, which is in need of our support. Aarong Dairy then, is a social statement all by itself. 
During its infancy, Aarong Dairy found that though there were plenty of locals involved in the milk trade, they could not find a permanent market. In fact, at times they found that there was hardly any demand or the demand was too erratic to be profitable for them. Low quantities of milk produced by their cows also meant that milk production was an expensive process. Poor breeding, limited veterinary services and shortages in cow feed were some of the other challenges face by dairy farmers.

Aarong Dairy identified the problems in the sectors and then began to find ways to rectify them. The first order of business was to establish both forward and backward linkages in terms of milk production.
In fact, although Aarong Dairy itself was established in 1998, its origins can be traced much further back, in the early 1980's, when the BRAC micro finance program aimed to provide funds for ultra-poor farmers to procure cows and invest in cows. Subsequently, BRAC's artificial insemination program also came into play, and successfully helped farmers rear breeds of cows that significantly increased their milk yields.
Having helped increase production of milk, BRAC now needed to ensure market access for its farmers at a fair price. This is where Aarong Dairy fits in.
The organisation began buying the milk that the farmers could produce at very competitive prices. Because of Aarong Dairy's presence, the local farmers could finally have guaranteed payments based on their individual level and quality of production. This was a huge incentive.

Aarong Dairy thus removed the major headaches for the farmers such as where to store to the milk and how to transport the milk. Aarong Dairy has gone on to set up 101 chilling plants, with 10 plants set up in the Northern region, where milk production is low due to unfavourable climactic conditions. However, Aarong Dairy had no plans to leave any farmer behind, so the Northern region was included despite the problems.
Furthermore, it was not just the milk producers who benefitted. As Sabina's story shows, milk collectors were even benefitted and so were those who were involved in the production of cattle feed.
Along with milk producers, peripheral industries and ancillary services also were advantaged greatly. Entire villages could be seen transforming, freeing themselves from the shackles of poverty. 
However, bringing in milk from all corners of the country, did throw up a dilemma of its own. Milk from each region is unique in its qualities and even taste. To ensure uniformity in all their milk products, Aarong Dairy instituted a three-step test. These tests help to establish the homogeneity of the products, so all the products are the same. The powder milk that Aarong Milk produces is also entirely locally sourced.
Currently, Aarong Dairy has 101 collection and chilling stations located in 25 districts, including 10 located in ultra-poor areas. The enterprise collects 102,559 litres milk daily and serves 50,000 farmers, 64 percent being women. More than 2 packets of Aarong milk are produced every 2 seconds.
Aarong Dairy, has come quite far in a short span of time given their ambitions. They have carved a niche for themselves not only for consumers but also for the producers. In fact, Aarong Dairy is a social enterprise. The primary objective is not necessarily to become a market leader, but help create market access for our dairy farmers, and ensure a fair price for them.
Nothing in terms of quality or even ethics is compromised. Aarong Dairy isn't just a product; it's a social statement or rather a powerful business statement that helped not only to preserve but also revitalise an entire industry.
Next time you purchase a packet of Aarong Milk, remember that you are not only purchasing something with nutritional value but rather you are directly responsible for preserving and ensuring the very livelihood of over 50,000 farmers.

Expectations high against India

The camp for the much-awaited India series will begin in Mirpur today with all the players of the 23-member preliminary squad scheduled to hit the gym at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in the morning.
After a brilliant performance against Pakistan, which saw the Tigers whitewash them in the ODIs, win the sole T20I and put up record stands in the Tests, the expectations for the India series, which begins on June 10, have increased manifold.
In addition to the momentum, the Tigers will be encouraged by the fact that a single win in the three-match ODI series can lift them above the West Indies to the seventh position in the ICC rankings. A winless series though, would send them back below Pakistan to number nine.
While Bangladesh's record against India in both Tests and ODIs isn't anything to write home about, one believes that the hosts can bank on the momentum gained from a historic series against Pakistan.
In Tests, Bangladesh have lost six out of the seven matches between the two sides, managing to draw the lone rain-hit Test in Chittagong in 2007. The last time the two teams met was at Mirpur in 2010. A game India comfortably won by 10 wickets.
However, that match saw a brilliant 151 from opener Tamim Iqbal, which helped prevent yet another innings defeat for the Tigers against India.
The good news for Bangladesh is that Tamim seems to have revived his form. With a double-century to his name in the last series, the left-hander seems to be enjoying himself. He has played two matches against India and has a healthy average of 58.50.

It's not just the left-hander who boasts a good record against India. Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad have scored runs at an average of 61.66 against the men in blue. In addition, the lone Test will take place on an expectedly flat Fatullah track where one expects batsmen to flourish.
However, the problem for the Tigers lies in their bowling. Apart from Mohammad Shahid, the Tigers are yet to find a pacer who is either fit or in form.
Rubel Hossain and Shafiul Islam, both of whom are recovering from their respective injuries, have been bowling in the nets regularly over the last few days and will hope they can make it in time for the Test.
Abul Hasan, who got on the wickets column after quite a while in the recently concluded Bangladesh Cricket League, is the other option.
While the pacers may not exactly hold the key for Bangladesh in the Test series, they are expected to play a leading role for the Tigers in the three-match ODI series in Mirpur.
From the current team, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (16), Shakib Al Hasan (14) and Taskin Ahmed (10), are the highest wicket-takers against India.
Bangladesh's chances of winning an ODI against India increase quite a bit when Mashrafe puts on a good show with the ball, with the skipper playing extremely crucial roles in each of Bangladesh's three wins against India.
In 2004, he scored 31 runs and took two wickets. The famous World Cup win in 2007 saw him bowl beautifully to take a four-wicket haul. In the Asia Cup in 2012, Mashrafe again took two crucial wickets.
The last time India visited Bangladesh was in 2014. Back then the team management decided to spice up the tracks and attack India with pace. That's when Taskin made a brilliant ODI debut by taking five wickets.
Although the plan then backfired as the Tigers themselves failed to handle the movement of the pitch, whether the Tigers will try out a similar strategy this time around remains uncertain.
However, the mood in the camp will be extremely different, as opposed to the seemingly derailed attitude last year. As skipper Mashrafe himself put it a number of times in the last few weeks, 'the players are extremely hungry for wins right now'.

Myanmar finds boat with 727 migrants

Myanmar's navy seized a boat packed with 727 people off the country's southern coast on Friday, the government said, about a week after it found a similar boat it said carried around 200 Bangladeshi migrants.
The nationality of the people on the boat was unclear. Myanmar's Ministry of Information described them as "Bengalis", using the term the government uses to describe the country's persecuted Muslim Rohingya minority as well as immigrants from Bangladesh.
Myanmar insisted it was not to blame for Southeast Asia's latest influx of "boat people" at a regional crisis meeting in Thailand on Friday, as the United States said thousands of vulnerable migrants remained adrift at sea and needed urgent rescue.
More than 3,000 migrants have landed in Indonesia and Malaysia since Thailand launched a crackdown on human trafficking gangs this month. About 2,600 are believed to be still adrift.
"Myanmar navy is now transporting the boat to its base on Hainggyi Island," said Tun Kyaw Kyaw, the Deputy Director General of the Ayeyarwady Division government, responsible for the area region where navy base is located.
The island is also on Myanmar's southern coast, close to the place where the boat was seized.
"After sending the people to the island, we will investigate them," said Tun Kyaw Kyaw, adding that the examination was necessary to determine their identity.

Pictures posted on the Ministry of Information's Facebook page showed scores of men huddling shoulder-to-shoulder under the sun on the front deck, while uniformed officials - one of them carrying a rifle - stood above. Women could be seen crammed together in the boat's cabins.
The navy found the boat 30 nautical miles off Myanmar's southern coast in the Andaman Sea. The government said there were 608 men, 74 women and 45 children on board. 

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in Bangladesh through production and distrib

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in Bangladesh through production and distrib

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in Bangladesh through production and distribution of micronutrients-fortified and affordable yoghurt, said Corinne Bazina, general manager of Danone Communities.
Grameen Danone also offered jobs to local farmers and opened a new window for women by creating their own sources of income and thus contributing to poverty reduction, she told the session moderated by Yunus.
The main challenge in a social business venture is to achieve financial sustainability, she said, adding that the success of Grameen Danone has inspired her to promote social business.
Currently, 10 social businesses are supported by Danone Communities across seven countries, including Bangladesh, India, France and China.

“Many countries want to replicate the business model,” she said.

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in Bangladesh through production and distribution of micronutrients-fortified and affordable yoghurt, said Corinne Bazina, general manager of Danone Communities.
Grameen Danone also offered jobs to local farmers and opened a new window for women by creating their own sources of income and thus contributing to poverty reduction, she told the session moderated by Yunus.
The main challenge in a social business venture is to achieve financial sustainability, she said, adding that the success of Grameen Danone has inspired her to promote social business.
Currently, 10 social businesses are supported by Danone Communities across seven countries, including Bangladesh, India, France and China.

“Many countries want to replicate the business model,” she said.

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in

A tool to create jobs, cut poverty

Social business has created hopes of eliminating poverty from the world by generating employment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
Many countries want to adopt the idea of social business, a brainchild of Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, they said, while sharing their experiences of promoting social business in their countries such as the USA, China, France and Germany.
They spoke at a plenary session on “sharing experience -- social business movement around the world” as part of the programmes of the sixth Social Business Day at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.
Grameen Danone, a social business venture established in 2007, is fighting malnutrition in Bangladesh through production and distribution of micronutrients-fortified and affordable yoghurt, said Corinne Bazina, general manager of Danone Communities.
Grameen Danone also offered jobs to local farmers and opened a new window for women by creating their own sources of income and thus contributing to poverty reduction, she told the session moderated by Yunus.
The main challenge in a social business venture is to achieve financial sustainability, she said, adding that the success of Grameen Danone has inspired her to promote social business.
Currently, 10 social businesses are supported by Danone Communities across seven countries, including Bangladesh, India, France and China.

“Many countries want to replicate the business model,” she said.
Robert E Johnson, president of Becker College, USA, was a bit excited as he was speaking just a few minutes before signing an agreement to set up a centre of Yunus Social Business at his college.
“We are aiming to promote social business in the USA by creating social business movement among the college students,” he said.
Gao Zhan, chief executive officer of Grameen China, said, “We need the Grameen model in China to reduce poverty.”
He said they plan to launch two new projects this year -- one to create a social business fund to support the poor. Yunus will visit China before October to launch the schemes.
Alex Counts, president and chief executive officer of Grameen Foundation, USA, said though some researchers are trying to undermine the ideas of microcredit and social business, many countries are showing their interest.
Mahfuz Anam, editor and publisher of The Daily Star, said the idea of social business is not getting much importance in the media, as the industry has less understanding of the business model.
“We have covered it, but without going to the depth of the idea,” he said. "Microcredit is the issue of the poor, but social business is the issue of civilisation and it's much wider."
Andrea Jung, president and chief executive officer of Grameen America, said though the USA is the richest nation in the world, the country still has poverty and unemployment.
“Our goal is to promote social business in the USA, where big companies like Apple and General Electric are doing business.”
Some 50,000 clients in 11 cities of the USA have so far been benefitted through the microcredit programmes of Grameen America, she said.
Hans Reitz, founder and managing director of Grameen Creative Lab, Germany, said the most profitable companies in the world are not aware of the social business model.
They need to be connected and encouraged to adopt the idea, he said, adding that the seventh Global Social Business Summit in Berlin this year will focus on spreading awareness and fostering discussions and collaborations for new social business ventures.