Strengthening Inclusive Development in Chittagong Hill Tracts
Background
The Chittagong Hill Tracts are located in southeast Bangladesh and consist of 3 Hill Districts: Bandarban, Khagrachari, and Rangamati. The region is home to 11 different ethnic groups and the Bengali community and has a population of 1.6 million. Each ethnic group retains a distinct language, culture, and tradition. Furthermore, the Hill Tracts are geographically distinct from the plain lands of Bangladesh, characterized by very steep, rugged mountainous terrain and dense jungle in many areas. Since 2003, the Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Facility has been supporting the Government of Bangladesh to promote sustainable development and confidence building in the post-conflict region, as guided by the Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord. As a part of the sustainable development process, the Strengthening Inclusive Development in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (SID-CHT) project is focused on capacity strengthening of Chittagong Hill Tract institutions to effectively manage services and encourage communities to take charge of their development, based on the principles of local participation and decentralized development
Area of Work
- Agriculture, Food security, and Livelihood promotion.
- Climate Resilience at household and community levels.
- Environment, Forest, and Watershed Co-Management.
- Support to Host Community Affected by Rohingya influx.
- Sustainable Management of Community Development.
- Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment through access and skill education.
- Inclusive Education in CHT.
- Youth Engagement, Skills, and Employment.
- Holistic marketing system.
- Strengthening local government for local economic development.
Significant Achievements
- People, most vulnerable women, engage with alternative
- livelihood to restore the natural environment and forest
- Agriculture production of small farm households
- increased and diversified
- Youth/ groups engaged in promoting peace and conflict resolutions
- Communities get basic health and education service
Objective
Citizen demands for voice, development, and accountability are met by the strengthening of institutions, which progressively provide universal access to basic services.