AMRAO MANUSH – WE ARE HUMAN TOO
We want to make sure that the most marginalized,
disadvantaged and vulnerable urban poor, including men,
women and children, have a fair chance to live a life of
health, happiness and dignity.
“Amrao Manush” (Improving Livelihoods of Urban Extreme Poor-Pavement Dweller Centre), is a program that works with the extremely deprived and vulnerable urban poor in Dhaka and Chittagong. With the support of Concern Worldwide, Irish Aid, Adhunika Foundation, USA( Sr. and Jr.), and some private donors, this program provides essential services to the urban poor, the majority of whom struggle against formidable odds to survive on pavements or in under-developed slums or squatter settlements.
BECOME A CHILD SPONSOR
Be a guardian angel to a disadvantaged child by donating monthly or yearly to ensure education and well-being of your sponsored child.
SPONSOR A POOR MOTHER
Dedicate monthly, quarterly or yearly donations to the well-being of a struggling mother. Be the gift of change in her life.
HELP CREATE OPPORTUNITIES
Extend your own resources to open up new doors of opportunities for the marginalized. Every effort is an important step towards a just and equal society.
VOLUNTEER AT OUR CENTRE
Spend time with Amrao Manush members at our Centres and share the joy of knowledge and caring to help others.
DONATE TO “AMRAO MANUSH”
Make a one-time or regular donations to the program to ensure that we can reach more extreme poor members who are facing formidable odds each day to survive. No amount is too small.
NEWS FROM AMRAO MANUSH
SAJIDA HAS LAUNCHED A ONCE-OFF UNCONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER TO SUPPORT URBAN EXTREME POOR HOUSEHOLDS
UNDERSTANDING AND EXTENDING SUPPORT TO THE URBAN EXTREME POOR MEMBERS OF AMRAO MANUSH PROGRAM
ADDRESSING THE PLIGHT OF THE EXTREME POOR DURING THE PANDEMIC
Pavement Dweller Centers
7
Participants Who Received Health Care
17,544
Participants Who Received Basic Necessities
21,493
Children Who Received Day Care Services
2,454
Districts Covered
2
Total Block Grants Distributed (BDT Million)
29.18
Total Savings Deposited by Participants (BDT Million)
22.39
Success Stories
A Story of Resilience
Forty-year-old Reza Begum lives in Khilgaon Railgate Squatter with her three children. Life for her has been difficult from an early age, when her father went missing and her mother had to move to the city to find work.
She started begging when she was only seven years old and spent much of her childhood roaming the streets, begging for food trying to survive. When she was old enough, Reza got married to a rickshaw puller who later turned out to have addiction issues and regularly abused his family. He also had three children from a previous marriage that Reza was completely unaware of until after their marriage.
In order to survive and feed a now growing family, Reza started brick breaking. There she found out from a peer about SAJIDA Foundation and their initiatives. She reached out to the organization and was soon admitted into their Amrao Manush program in 2017. After a three day-long training on business and money-management, Reza finally received a block grant.
Reza turned her life around completely. With the money she received, she started her own business of selling bricks to different vendors and slowly widened her scope. Soon, she was employing others like her from the community and giving poor women a chance to live better. Now, Reza has a group of fellow women who run the business of breaking and selling bricks.
“I am finally able to give my children a good life, and a promise of a better tomorrow with the education they deserve!”
A Mother’s Tale | Momtaz
“I used to be so afraid of losing him. I was always scared that, someone would steal him and I would never know where to look for him,” recalls Momtaj with tears in her eyes. At the time, clutching her newborn child she named Morsalin, Momtaj had taken to the streets to beg once more.
Read More
Momtaj is a blind, 24-year-old mother who was discovered by the Amrao Manush Program as she lay on the street with her newborn child. This is her story.