On 8th March 2017, Grameen Telecom Trust (GTT) celebrated women’s achievements on International Women’s Day (IWD) with its employee and guest members at the Social Business Learning Centre (SBLC) of GTT. UN’s slogan for gender equality and women empowerment in regard to Social Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 is “Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030” and this year’s IWD theme was “Be Bold for Change”.
Ms. Parveen Mahmud, FCA (Managing Director, Grameen Telecom Trust) inaugurated the ceremony and in her opening speech she addressed the issue of gender equality in workforce and emphasized on a women friendly work environment in sync with the SDGs 2030 for gender equality and women empowerment. Md. Ashraful Hassan (CEO, Grameen Telecom Trust) was also preset at the event and shared his experiences and role play for equal opportunities for female employee at work.
Followed by MD’s speech was a video presentation on women’s achievement in retrospect to GTT’s programs. There were guest speakers who shared their experiences and thoughts regarding gender equality in work force. Among the guest members were Professor Salma Khan (Trustee, Grameen Telecom Trust & former chairman, CEDAW), Ms. Nurjahan Begum (Former Managing Director, Grameen Shakti, Grameen Shikkha, Grameen Bank), Jannat-E-Quanine (Former General Manager, Grameen Bank), Saleha Begum (Managing Director, Grameen Bebsha Bikash), Lamiya Morshed (Executive Director, Yunus Centre) and Ms. Tasrin Akter (AGM, Finance & Accounts, Grameen Distribution Limited). Ms. Sahmima (Fashion Designer, Grameen Poshra, GTT), also shared her experience of how she fought with her fears and followed her passion.
Representative from each department of GTT also shared their promises and roles for equal opportunities for female employee at GTT. Mr. Sultan Ahmed Bhuiyan, FCA (CFO & Board Secretary, GTT), Mr. Manjur Ahmed (Head of HR & Admin, GTT), Mr. Jayanta Kumar Bosu (AGM, Social Business, GTT), Mr. Faiyaz Bin Hasan, (AGM, Legal & Asset Management, GTT), Mr. Fakhrul Islam (AGM, Finance & Accounts, GTT), Mr. Mohammed Shabab Habib Khan (Senior Manager, Project & Infrastructure Development, GTT) and Mr. Forhad Karim Khan (Senior Manager, Internal Audit, GTT) were among the speakers.
The program also hosted a poetry recitation on the history of IWD written by Ms. Aditi Kabir (Assistant Manager, Social Business & Communication, GTT). At the end of the ceremony two songs were performed lead by Ms. Nazia Ferdows Shemme (Officer, Admin & Supply Chain, GTT) where the audience joined in the chorus of the song “We Shall Overcome”. The program ended with cake cutting and photo session followed by snacks.
