Projects Brief
Name of the Project: “Economic and social empowerment of the disadvantaged rural girls and women through livelihood skills training and life skills training”.
Project duration: 11 October 2021 to 01 August 2022 (09 months 22 days).
Project Brief:
In development partnership with Girls Inspire, Commonwealth of Learning, Centre for Mass Education in Science (CMES) is providing skills training to 3,000 women and girls from disadvantaged rural background in three different trades and facilitating the return of 240 girls into formal schooling in various districts in Bangladesh.
The girls and women are getting trained in the trades of Computer Skills Development ( Basic computer office application), Dress Making & Tailoring and Vermi compost & Nursery in 4 field units of CMES.
The trainees are also trained on various life skills like human rights, child rights, legal rights, women rights, prevention of violence against women, labor rights, child early and forced marriage, HIV/AIDS awareness, reproductive health rights, menstrual and personal hygiene etc.
Unit wise participant List:
| Serial no. | Name of the units | Computer Skills Development ( Basic computer office application) | Dress Making & Tailoring | Vermi compost & Nursery | Total (1 year) |
| 1 | Suruj | 320 | 320 | 110 | 750 |
| 2 | Deuty | 320 | 320 | 110 | 750 |
| 3 | Damkura | 320 | 320 | 110 | 750 |
| 4 | Jaldhaka | 320 | 320 | 110 | 750 |
| Total | 1280 | 1280 | 440 | 3000 |
Project area:
- Suruj unit, Tangail sadar upazila, Tangail
- Deuty unit- Peergacha upazila, Rangpur
- Damkura unit, Paba upazila, Rajshahi,
- Jaldhakha unit, Jaldhaka upazila, Nilphamari,
The location of the project Units are shown in the following table:
| District | Upazilla | Location | Specific reason for selection of the area |
| Tangail | Sadar Upazilla | Union- Gala | Intense poverty, lack of education, specific environmental and social disadvantages, clustering in an underserved region, enthusiasm of the local community. |
| Rajshahi | Paba | Union- Damkura, Harogram, Horipur | Do |
| Rangpur | Peergacha | Union- Kallani | Do |
| Nilphamary | Jaldhaka | Union- Shoulmari, | Do |
Development Partner: Commonwealth of Learning (COL), 4710 Kingsway, Suite- 2500, Burnaby. BCV 5H4M2, Canada
Detailed Budget:
| Serial no. | Budget Heads | Budgeted amount (BDT) |
| 1. | Technology Consumable | 83,460 |
| 2. | Occupational hazard & Safety measures | 37,774 |
| 3. | Dissemination & community campaign | 154,200 |
| 4. | Promotional & Learning materials Development | 10,000 |
| 5. | Program Aids | 50,450 |
| 6. | TA/ DA & Transportation | 97,300 |
| 7. | Office Supplies & Utilities | 110,596 |
| 8. | Salary & Benefits | 28,39,025 |
| 9. | Training Centre Rent (ORC) | 240,000 |
| 10. | Postage & Telecommunication | 89,516 |
| 11. | Repair & Maintenance | 62,271 |
| 12 | Baseline & Endline Survey | 25,600 |
| 13 | Contingency | 46,000 |
| 14 | Audit fee | 50,000 |
| Sub Total | 38,96,193 | |
| 15 | Management Fee | 77,924 |
| Total Budget |
39,74,116
|
Name of Project: Basic School System and Adolescent Girls’ Programme: Modular second chance education with livelihood skills and gender empowerment.
Project Brief: CMES focuses its attention on the disadvantaged rural adolescents and youth, arranging an appropriate education for those who are never enrolled or have dropped out of schools through this project. The result has been evolution of the Basic School System (BSS) with an integrated approach emphasizing livelihood skills and gender empowerment. The latter aspect has been further enhanced by the start of the adolescent girls program (AGP) in 1991. BSS and AGP form the main thrust of the CMES program, and this project is regarded as the Core Project comprising the large part of CMES’s activities.
Development Partners: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida)
Name of Project: Basic School System and Gender Empowerment Program for the rural disadvantaged children and adolescents to create Young Social Entrepreneurs in Sustainable Development (YSES)
Project Brief: YSES project is implemented to provide alternative and diverse options and sustainable development in harmony with the enhancement of quality of life and livelihood of the disadvantaged adolescents and young people. The major aim is to create environment conscious graduates who can earn a living in eco-friendly activities as social entrepreneurs.
Development Partner: Caritas Switzerland (CS)
Name of Project: Effective Education through the Adaptation of Pedagogy of Text (PoT) to the Basic School System and Adolescent Girls Program leading towards empowerment of the disadvantaged young people.
Project Brief:The PoT project of Ghontagor passed through its first phase (2009-2012) and contributed successfully for quality education of the targeted group. From the inspiration of the 1st phase, CMES started its 2nd phase in 1st January 2013 which will take its innovative pedagogic methods to some existing units in other projects improving the participatory approach to education.
Development Partner: Enfants Du Monde (EDM)
Name of Project: Adolescent Empowerment through Social Norm Change
Project Brief: In 2012 CMES successfully completed third phase of ‘Adolescent Girls’ project launched in partnership with UNICEF started a decade back in 2001 with a view to empowering adolescents by creating congenial environment for their healthy social and mental development and joyful life.
Development Partner: Unicef, Bangladesh
Name of Project: Horage Scholarship for the disadvantaged students of CMES Bangladesh
Project Brief: To support underprivileged adolescents who want to pursue further studies CMES, with support from Horage, a reputed Swiss watch manufacturer, is providing financial assistance to buttress their dream of higher education. CMES has selected 95 graduates from most promising needy students from its Basic School System (BSS), who are trying to pursue higher education in high schools and colleges in spite of their severe disadvantages.
Development Partner: HORAGE Foundation, Switzerland
Name of Project: Micro Credit Programme (under microfinance scheme of PKSF)
Project Brief: CMES separated credit support activities from AGP business and started independent micro credit program in 1992. It allows CMES graduates to receive a microcredit to start new business or expand their business where loans are to be returned in small installments. The main goal is to make them successful entrepreneurs breaking out all the hurdles and burdens of poverty.
Development Partner: Palli Karma Sahayak Foundation (PKSF)
Name of Project: Rural Electrification Renewable Energy Development Project
Project Brief: CMES started solar program with soft loans from Infrastructure Develop Company Limited in 2003 for the off grid areas. The program has electrified rural homes of non-grid area in 23 districts with 19 program centres and 3 program sub-centers under agreement with the Infrastructure Development Company Ltd. (IDCOL) since 2003.
Development Partner: Infrastructure Develop Company Limited (IDCOL)