Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh

Bangladesh continues to experience persistent gender inequalities shaped by cultural, religious, and social norms. Within its patriarchal social structure, women’s roles are commonly limited to reproductive work or household-based productive activities. These tasks are essential to family well-being...

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Main Authors: Mahzab, Moogdho, Quisumbing, Agnes R., Kyle, Jordan, Simi, Sonjida Mesket
Format: Brief
Language:Inglés
Published: International Food Policy Research Institute 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178930
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author Mahzab, Moogdho
Quisumbing, Agnes R.
Kyle, Jordan
Simi, Sonjida Mesket
author_browse Kyle, Jordan
Mahzab, Moogdho
Quisumbing, Agnes R.
Simi, Sonjida Mesket
author_facet Mahzab, Moogdho
Quisumbing, Agnes R.
Kyle, Jordan
Simi, Sonjida Mesket
author_sort Mahzab, Moogdho
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Bangladesh continues to experience persistent gender inequalities shaped by cultural, religious, and social norms. Within its patriarchal social structure, women’s roles are commonly limited to reproductive work or household-based productive activities. These tasks are essential to family well-being but unpaid, undervalued, and routinely overlooked compared to men’s work (Efroymson et al., 2007). These norms have historically constrained women’s visibility, mobility, and participation in the public sphere. The expansion of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) marked an important shift in this landscape. Bangladesh’s NGO sector is heterogeneous, with diverse organizational structures, management styles, and ideological orientations that span both service-delivery and movement-based models (Kabeer, 2002). The rapid growth of NGOs starting in the 1980s is driven largely by increases in donor funding, which signaled a move away from earlier approaches focused on promoting political mobilization and accountability of government toward more service-oriented delivery systems (Rahman, 2006). Over the last decades, many of these service-delivery organizations have incorporated advocacy and rights-based strategies into their work (Nazneen, 2008). Through these evolving programmes, NGOs highlighted and strengthened the contributions of underprivileged women as economic actors and active participants in development and political process. However, despite this progress, there is still no clear empirical evidence from Bangladesh that directly links the presence of NGOs to improvements in women’s agency, voice, and empowerment.
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spelling CGSpace1789302025-12-18T02:11:58Z Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh Mahzab, Moogdho Quisumbing, Agnes R. Kyle, Jordan Simi, Sonjida Mesket women's empowerment gender impact non-governmental organizations Bangladesh continues to experience persistent gender inequalities shaped by cultural, religious, and social norms. Within its patriarchal social structure, women’s roles are commonly limited to reproductive work or household-based productive activities. These tasks are essential to family well-being but unpaid, undervalued, and routinely overlooked compared to men’s work (Efroymson et al., 2007). These norms have historically constrained women’s visibility, mobility, and participation in the public sphere. The expansion of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) marked an important shift in this landscape. Bangladesh’s NGO sector is heterogeneous, with diverse organizational structures, management styles, and ideological orientations that span both service-delivery and movement-based models (Kabeer, 2002). The rapid growth of NGOs starting in the 1980s is driven largely by increases in donor funding, which signaled a move away from earlier approaches focused on promoting political mobilization and accountability of government toward more service-oriented delivery systems (Rahman, 2006). Over the last decades, many of these service-delivery organizations have incorporated advocacy and rights-based strategies into their work (Nazneen, 2008). Through these evolving programmes, NGOs highlighted and strengthened the contributions of underprivileged women as economic actors and active participants in development and political process. However, despite this progress, there is still no clear empirical evidence from Bangladesh that directly links the presence of NGOs to improvements in women’s agency, voice, and empowerment. 2025-12-17 2025-12-17T15:35:08Z 2025-12-17T15:35:08Z Brief https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178930 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Mahzab, Moogdho; Quisumbing, Agnes R.; Kyle, Jordan; and Simi, Sonjida Mesket. 2025. Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh. IFPRI Project Note. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178930
spellingShingle women's empowerment
gender
impact
non-governmental organizations
Mahzab, Moogdho
Quisumbing, Agnes R.
Kyle, Jordan
Simi, Sonjida Mesket
Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title_full Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title_fullStr Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title_full_unstemmed Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title_short Impact of NGOs on women's empowerment and voice in Bangladesh
title_sort impact of ngos on women s empowerment and voice in bangladesh
topic women's empowerment
gender
impact
non-governmental organizations
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178930
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