Bangladesh

Narayanganj, Bangladesh — This Muslim-majority nation may have a female prime minister, but at the local level it remains difficult for women to gain and hold political power.

Salina Hayat Ivy knows this better than anybody. As the mayor of this fast-growing port city close to Dhaka, she is the first and only woman to lead a “city corporation” — that’s the local term for Bangladesh’s 11 biggest urban jurisdictions. It’s a role that makes her something of a spokesperson for women leaders and the barriers they face here — but also a symbol of the possibilities for change.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Friday stressed equal participation of women alongside men in political decision making as this only could help achieve the real development and progress of a nation.

“In Bangladesh, we celebrate empowerment of women Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman envisioned a Bangladesh where women would have equal rights as men. This legacy has inspired me to carry on the work in ensuring that all genders enjoy equal rights. Only this can help achieve real development and progress of a nation,” she said.

Bangladesh has started a process to set up a ‘parliamentary caucus’ to better coordinate parliament’s actions on reproductive, maternal and child health, Foreign Minister Dipu Moni has said.

Speaking at the end of the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s (IPU) two-day meet in Dhaka, Dipu Moni on Wednesday said Speaker would be in the helm of the Caucus.