Search

In 2019, Start Fund Bangladesh opened up its membership to 26 local and national organisations enabling them to access direct funding and become involved in decision-making around funding and responses. As a direct result, 80% of all Start Fund Bangladesh funding had been awarded directly to local and national organisations in 2020. This directive to shift the power has also been explored in other ways. For example, Start Fund Bangladesh has also been working to encourage INGOs who have local implementing partners to share overhead costs so that these can be used to grow and strengthen local organisations. To understand more about further changes that Start Fund Bangladesh could make, we listened to some of the reflections of Sina Chowdhury and Sirajul Islam who work for two of the local organisations that joined in 2019. The verbatim quotes from the interviews provide a powerful and rich narrative around their experience working with Start Fund Bangladesh and as humanitarians and have led us to formulate three main lessons for the Start Network: BE MORE INCLUSIVE TO BE MORE EFFECTIVE; UPSKILL TO EMPOWER; and CHAMPION FOR CHANGE. This report would be of interest to all those working towards a system change to a more locally led humanitarian system that is more accountable to those affected by crisis.

After a successful four years, Start Fund Bangladesh has received an additional £1.23 million from the UK's FCDO to continue its lifesaving work across the country.

In 2020, Start Fund Bangladesh (SFB) conducted an Organisational System Strengthening Initiative (OSSI) facilitated by an external consultant. This initiative took a participatory approach in assisting six of SFB’s local members to identify gaps in the operating functions of their respective organisations. Bolipara Nari Kalyan Somity (BNKS) was one of these organisations. It is a women-led organisation that has been operating in Chittagong Hill Tracks of southeastern Bangladesh since 1991.  

When Bangladesh went into lockdown at the end of March 2020, many families were apprehensive about how they would earn a living. Although the government responded quickly by introducing economic stimulus packages, and support for vulnerable and low-income families, it wasn't enough to meet all of the need. One group that was initially left without adequate support were marginal farmers, who make up more than 75% of the country’s total farmer population.

Humanitarian actors play an important role in disaster response in Bangladesh. As such, their decisions and actions can have a profound effect on the daily lives of disaster affected people. However, the accountability framework being used by different humanitarian agencies are different and to some extent inadequate to hold humanitarian agencies accountable to the affected people in rapid response. Affected people lack an effective voice in the decision-making process of the humanitarian agencies. Hence, new tools and mechanisms are needed at the local and national level to make the humanitarian actors more accountable to affected people and communities.

In a recent Desk Review on Enhancing the Potential of Pooled Funds for Localisation (September 2020) conducted by the Grand Bargain Workstream 2 on Localisation, Start Fund Bangladesh (SFB) was held up as a strong example of locally-led humanitarian action that exemplifies some of the commitments set out in the Grand Bargain. SFB’s transformative model shows that it is possible to have a more proactive, efficient and locally-led humanitarian sector.

Humanitarian coordination in Bangladesh involves a large number of stakeholders and forums, and a complex system of government committees that relate to disaster management actors, clusters, working groups, NGOs and INGOs. To be successful, this system needs to be responsive and adaptive to the local needs and contexts, well-coordinated and to ensure active participation of local and national actors. This is where Start Fund Bangladesh (SFB) fits in. Here are some examples where SFB has facilitated or lead changes within the humanitarian system in Bangladesh.

Start Fund Bangladesh, since its inception in 2017, has been advocating to change the deep-rooted partnership practices that hinder localisation commitments, one of which is the equal sharing of ICR. Although changes were not reflected initially, in 2019 a few Start Fund Bangladesh INGO members started negotiating with their head offices and became successful in ensuring a share of ICR went to their local partners. 

Using local membership strength of a pooled funding mechanism to extend humanitarian support during a pandemic.

COVID-19 has caused massive disruption to large-scale national and international mobilisation. Reduced international travel and the lockdown of stations, ports, borders, transportation and supply lines has disrupted the operations of many INGOs, making it virtually impossible to deploy surge capacities. As a result, many local organisations have been forced to step up and carry out locally coordinated responses to this pandemic.