Help the Marginalized Survive COVID in Bangladesh
Tax deductible
Support the indigenous people (Chakma, Garo, Tripura, Sawtal), the transgender and intersex community (known as Hijra), and sex workers, who are among the marginalized communities of Bangladesh that have been the most severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis. COVID has caused far-reaching economic hardships in Bangladesh, bringing many day-workers and vulnerable communities to financial ruin. Our on-ground partners have already distributed support to over 5500 families in urgent need. However, we talked to numerous NGOs and community leaders and identified over 1050 families (3200+ people) from these marginalized communities who have not received any form of private or state support. Your donation will provide essential relief for the survival of these underprivileged but resilient communities. A $10 donation could feed a family of 4 for a week, so every donation counts.
We have partnered with Alokito Shishu, our on-ground distribution partners, to distribute relief to these families. Alokito Shishu has been leading relief efforts through the Gift For Good initiative with their wide network of trained volunteers and connections to local NGOs and police officers. Working alongside some bold community leaders who have emerged, Gift For Good volunteers continue to support many more that are still unfed (read more below). All funds raised on GoFundme will be transferred to the Gift For Good team.
Our campaign philosophy:
1. We believe in providing relief to marginalized communities that are in most dire need; those who may not be receiving aid from other large-scale efforts.
2. We prioritize maintaining complete transparency about exactly where your money is going through this public spreadsheet of Donations that our team is committed to updating regularly.
3. Our campaign is about more than raising money, it is about connecting each contributor to the people they are helping. We will do this with regular updates (+pictures) of our relief distribution and details about the communities that we support.
Our Target Communities:
Indigenous communities of Chakma, Tripura, Garo, and Sawtal ethnicities. These communities are often socially isolated or they reside in remote areas where other aid efforts cannot reach easily.
Hijra community (recognized as third gender) is a historically disenfranchised group of intersex and trans people. During the COVID crisis, they have been left helpless as their usual means of income (blessing couples at weddings and raising money from shop owners) are unfeasible. They have been largely excluded from other relief programs and are further exploited by landlords and healthcare providers.
Sex workers, some with children, are uniquely marginalized. Young women in brothels have no business or support network through the crisis. They require financial assistance for food and sanitary products, but they are further excluded from Zakat (religious) donations.
Following is a detailed list of the communities we are supporting and our budget allocation (updated on July 1):
Community Location # of people Budget ($)
Garo Community Girls Dhaka 13 305
Sawtal (Indigenous) Rangpur 1200 2,652
Thakurgaon 200 427
Chakma (Indigenous) Rangamati 620 1,370
Munda (Indigenous) Satkhira 800 1,768
Sex workers Faridpur 210 1,856
Jamalpur 220 1,936
__________________________________________________________________________________
Total 3263 $10,314
Total accounting for GoFundMe and other fees: $10,682
Alokito Shishu and the Gift For Good Project (On-ground partners)
Alokito Shishu (Facebook page ) is a social nonprofit founded in 2015 with a mission to educate the underprivileged children of Bangladesh. In late 2019, they launched the Gift For Good project to distribute hand-me-downs to underprivileged families, especially to those in remote areas and during crisis times. Since March 15, Gift For Good volunteers have been working tirelessly to provide relief assistance to disadvantaged people. [Follow their Facebook page for updates on all their relief work]
After considering a few organizations, we partnered with Alokito Shishu’s Gift For Good Initiative for our campaign because our goals and philosophies aligned. Gift For Good’s work with marginalized communities set them apart. Their widespread volunteer network, who are trained in social distancing guidelines and clad in PPE, gave us the confidence that they were fit for the job. The volunteers work with locals and community leaders to conduct effective relief drives. Alokito Shishu has assured that 100% of your donations will go directly to assisting families in need (minus GoFundMe fees) and there is no volunteer payout.
The relief packages provided by Gift For Good costs about BDT 725 (USD 8.84) on average and provides essential food items for a family of 4 for up to 7 days. There are changes to contents depending on the needs of the community, local market price, and availability of items (such as substituting lentils for local vegetable, etc). Our volunteers ensure the lowest cost by purchasing food in bulk wholesale. Each package usually features the following items:
Item Quantity Price (BDT)
Rice 8 kgs 376
Lentils 1 kg 90
Oil 500 g 55
Salt 500 g 22
Potato 2 kg 50
Soap 1 pc 35
Bag 1 pc 23
Overhead (transport, PPE) 70
___________________________________________________________________
Total BDT 725 = USD 8.84
Following any relief drive to a community, the Gift For Good team immediately conducts a free-to-participate field survey, recording specific information on household size, profession, and phone numbers of beneficiaries. Before further distribution to the same region, the core team calls affected households or a community leader to double-check on the food supply status. This simple cross checking helps the team ensure efficient allocation of resources to help reach communities in dire need.
For questions and concerns about the Gift For Good project or to support their work, email [email redacted].
You can support our case and make a donation in one of several ways.
DONATION METHODS:
USA, Canada, and donations in USD:
GoFundMe: donate here
Facebook:
Venmo: @dbiswas (put “covid relief” in subject)
PayPal: available through GoFundMe payment portal
Bangladeshi donors:
bKash: (+880)1711-536084 [Name on account: Iftekher Khalid]
Rocket: (+880)18420770552 [Name on account: Mithun Das Kabbo]
Bank transfer: Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited, Satmosjid Road branch
Account Name: Iftekhar Khalid
Account #: [phone redacted]05
Routing #: 090264030
Swift code: DBBLBDDH
Singapore donors: Paylah: +6592436410 (Fahrisa)
European Donors:
PayPal: ([email redacted])
Bank transfer: Bank: ABN AMRO B.V.
Account Name: S Nawar,
IBAN: NL54ABNA0534376274
BIC: ABNANL2A, The Netherlands,
Reference: GoFundMe Donation
Master list of donations received: shorturl.at/blzEJ (updated regularly)
About the team:
We are a group of friends and like-minded social workers living abroad but with roots in Bangladesh.
Debopriyo Biswas (MD, USA): University of Maryland, PhD Cand in Physics
Amritabha Guha (BC, Canada): BSc. Physics, University of British Columbia
Suhiba Fariha Firuz (NC, USA): Duke University, Computer Science graduate
Saraf Nawar (Netherlands): TU Delft, BSc. Civil Engineering & Geosciences
Fahrisa Islam (Singapore): Yale-NUS College, BSc. Life Sciences
Jason Kazi (VA, USA): Community Leader and Organizer
Radwan Chowdhury (MD, USA): UDiON Foundation, Chairman
Uzma Binte Haidary (MD, USA): Morgan State University, Masters Public Health
Farasatul Adnan (MD, USA): University of Maryland, PhD Cand in ECE
Shifti Kamal Tanna (VA, USA): Columbia School Of Social Work, MSW candidate
Targiv Sanan Roham (NL, Canada): B.A. Memorial University of Newfoundland
Ashraf Sehba Tabil Oindry (AL, USA): University of Alabama, Huntsville, Undergrad
Taosif Ahsan (NJ, USA): Princeton University, Undergrad
For questions or concerns about our fundraiser campaign, reach out to [email redacted]nceton.edu.
We have partnered with Alokito Shishu, our on-ground distribution partners, to distribute relief to these families. Alokito Shishu has been leading relief efforts through the Gift For Good initiative with their wide network of trained volunteers and connections to local NGOs and police officers. Working alongside some bold community leaders who have emerged, Gift For Good volunteers continue to support many more that are still unfed (read more below). All funds raised on GoFundme will be transferred to the Gift For Good team.
Our campaign philosophy:
1. We believe in providing relief to marginalized communities that are in most dire need; those who may not be receiving aid from other large-scale efforts.
2. We prioritize maintaining complete transparency about exactly where your money is going through this public spreadsheet of Donations that our team is committed to updating regularly.
3. Our campaign is about more than raising money, it is about connecting each contributor to the people they are helping. We will do this with regular updates (+pictures) of our relief distribution and details about the communities that we support.
Our Target Communities:
Indigenous communities of Chakma, Tripura, Garo, and Sawtal ethnicities. These communities are often socially isolated or they reside in remote areas where other aid efforts cannot reach easily.
Hijra community (recognized as third gender) is a historically disenfranchised group of intersex and trans people. During the COVID crisis, they have been left helpless as their usual means of income (blessing couples at weddings and raising money from shop owners) are unfeasible. They have been largely excluded from other relief programs and are further exploited by landlords and healthcare providers.
Sex workers, some with children, are uniquely marginalized. Young women in brothels have no business or support network through the crisis. They require financial assistance for food and sanitary products, but they are further excluded from Zakat (religious) donations.
Following is a detailed list of the communities we are supporting and our budget allocation (updated on July 1):
Community Location # of people Budget ($)
Garo Community Girls Dhaka 13 305
Sawtal (Indigenous) Rangpur 1200 2,652
Thakurgaon 200 427
Chakma (Indigenous) Rangamati 620 1,370
Munda (Indigenous) Satkhira 800 1,768
Sex workers Faridpur 210 1,856
Jamalpur 220 1,936
__________________________________________________________________________________
Total 3263 $10,314
Total accounting for GoFundMe and other fees: $10,682
Alokito Shishu and the Gift For Good Project (On-ground partners)
Alokito Shishu (Facebook page ) is a social nonprofit founded in 2015 with a mission to educate the underprivileged children of Bangladesh. In late 2019, they launched the Gift For Good project to distribute hand-me-downs to underprivileged families, especially to those in remote areas and during crisis times. Since March 15, Gift For Good volunteers have been working tirelessly to provide relief assistance to disadvantaged people. [Follow their Facebook page for updates on all their relief work]
After considering a few organizations, we partnered with Alokito Shishu’s Gift For Good Initiative for our campaign because our goals and philosophies aligned. Gift For Good’s work with marginalized communities set them apart. Their widespread volunteer network, who are trained in social distancing guidelines and clad in PPE, gave us the confidence that they were fit for the job. The volunteers work with locals and community leaders to conduct effective relief drives. Alokito Shishu has assured that 100% of your donations will go directly to assisting families in need (minus GoFundMe fees) and there is no volunteer payout.
The relief packages provided by Gift For Good costs about BDT 725 (USD 8.84) on average and provides essential food items for a family of 4 for up to 7 days. There are changes to contents depending on the needs of the community, local market price, and availability of items (such as substituting lentils for local vegetable, etc). Our volunteers ensure the lowest cost by purchasing food in bulk wholesale. Each package usually features the following items:
Item Quantity Price (BDT)
Rice 8 kgs 376
Lentils 1 kg 90
Oil 500 g 55
Salt 500 g 22
Potato 2 kg 50
Soap 1 pc 35
Bag 1 pc 23
Overhead (transport, PPE) 70
___________________________________________________________________
Total BDT 725 = USD 8.84
Following any relief drive to a community, the Gift For Good team immediately conducts a free-to-participate field survey, recording specific information on household size, profession, and phone numbers of beneficiaries. Before further distribution to the same region, the core team calls affected households or a community leader to double-check on the food supply status. This simple cross checking helps the team ensure efficient allocation of resources to help reach communities in dire need.
For questions and concerns about the Gift For Good project or to support their work, email [email redacted].
You can support our case and make a donation in one of several ways.
DONATION METHODS:
USA, Canada, and donations in USD:
GoFundMe: donate here
Facebook:
Venmo: @dbiswas (put “covid relief” in subject)
PayPal: available through GoFundMe payment portal
Bangladeshi donors:
bKash: (+880)1711-536084 [Name on account: Iftekher Khalid]
Rocket: (+880)18420770552 [Name on account: Mithun Das Kabbo]
Bank transfer: Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited, Satmosjid Road branch
Account Name: Iftekhar Khalid
Account #: [phone redacted]05
Routing #: 090264030
Swift code: DBBLBDDH
Singapore donors: Paylah: +6592436410 (Fahrisa)
European Donors:
PayPal: ([email redacted])
Bank transfer: Bank: ABN AMRO B.V.
Account Name: S Nawar,
IBAN: NL54ABNA0534376274
BIC: ABNANL2A, The Netherlands,
Reference: GoFundMe Donation
Master list of donations received: shorturl.at/blzEJ (updated regularly)
About the team:
We are a group of friends and like-minded social workers living abroad but with roots in Bangladesh.
Debopriyo Biswas (MD, USA): University of Maryland, PhD Cand in Physics
Amritabha Guha (BC, Canada): BSc. Physics, University of British Columbia
Suhiba Fariha Firuz (NC, USA): Duke University, Computer Science graduate
Saraf Nawar (Netherlands): TU Delft, BSc. Civil Engineering & Geosciences
Fahrisa Islam (Singapore): Yale-NUS College, BSc. Life Sciences
Jason Kazi (VA, USA): Community Leader and Organizer
Radwan Chowdhury (MD, USA): UDiON Foundation, Chairman
Uzma Binte Haidary (MD, USA): Morgan State University, Masters Public Health
Farasatul Adnan (MD, USA): University of Maryland, PhD Cand in ECE
Shifti Kamal Tanna (VA, USA): Columbia School Of Social Work, MSW candidate
Targiv Sanan Roham (NL, Canada): B.A. Memorial University of Newfoundland
Ashraf Sehba Tabil Oindry (AL, USA): University of Alabama, Huntsville, Undergrad
Taosif Ahsan (NJ, USA): Princeton University, Undergrad
For questions or concerns about our fundraiser campaign, reach out to [email redacted]nceton.edu.
Fundraising team (13)
Debopriyo Biswas
Organizer
College Park, MD
UDION FOUNDATION, INC
Beneficiary
Suhiba Firuz
Team member
Farasatul Adnan
Team member
Fahrisa Islam Maisha
Team member
Shifti Kamal
Team member