Bangladesh Counter Trafficking-in-Persons (BC/TIP) Program QUARTERLY PERFORMANCE REPORT Quarter 3, Year 4 (April – June 2018) Cooperative Agreement No. AID-388-A-14-00003 Prepared for: Prepared by: Habiba Akter Winrock International Agreement Officer’s Representative 2101 Riverfront Drive United States Agency for International Little Rock, Arkansas 7220 Development /Bangladesh Dhaka, Bangladesh DISCLAIMER The author’s views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. 1 BC/TIP Quarterly Performance Report: Q3, Year 4 Table of Contents Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations ....................................................................... 3 BRIEF PROGRAM DESCRIPTION ..................................................................................... 5 A POLITICAL CONTEXT AND ENABLING ENVIRONMENT ................................................. 6 B PROGRAM OUTCOMES ..................................................................................................... 7 C SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES .............................................................................................. 11 D INDICATOR DATA ............................................................................................................ 45 E GOAL AND OBJECTIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS .............................................................. 51 F CHALLENGES ................................................................................................................... 58 G EXPENDITURE ................................................................................................................ 59 H PROGRAM PRIORITIES FOR Q4, Y4 ............................................................................... 60 I SUB AWARDS ISSUED ..................................................................................................... 61 J SUB AWARD PERFORMANCE REPORT ........................................................................ 61 K PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ............................................................................................. 61 Cover Photo: “ABONG KALO MANUSH”- a street drama on TIP and Safe Migration, produced by Agrogoti Sangstha under the BC/TIP program, is performing at the school premises of Kalaroa Satkhira. Photo Credit: Agrogoti Sangstha 2 BC/TIP Quarterly Performance Report: Q3, Year 4 Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations ACT Actions for Combatting Trafficking in Persons AIG Assistant Inspector General ATSEC Action against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children BAIRA Bangladesh Association of International Recruitment Agencies BC/TIP Bangladesh Counter Trafficking-in-Persons BDT Bangladesh Taka BITA Bangladesh Institute of Theatre Arts BMET Bureau of Manpower, Education and Training BNP Bangladesh National Party BRAC Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee BSEHR Bangladesh Society for the Enforcement of Human Rights CBO Community-Based Organization CLA Collaborating, Learning and Adapting COP Chief of Party CSO Civil Society Organization CTC Counter-Trafficking Committee CVE Counter Violent Extremism DAM Dhaka Ahsania Mission DEMO District Education and Manpower Office DFID Department for International Development DI Democracy International DIG Deputy Inspector General GOB Government of Bangladesh GO-NGO Governmental/Non-Governmental IEC Information, Education, and Communication IGP Inspector General of Police INGO International Non-Governmental Organization IOM International Organization for Migration IR Intermediate Result JATI Judicial Administration Training Institute JMB Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen KAP Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MEL Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning 3 BC/TIP Quarterly Performance Report: Q3, Year 4 MERL Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning MoEWOE Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment MOWCA Ministry of Women and Children Affairs MOHA Ministry of Home Affairs MoLJPA Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs MSI Management Systems International MSW Ministry of Social Welfare MOU Memorandum of Understanding MYS Ministry of Youth and Sport NGO Non-Governmental Organization NLASO National Legal Aid Services Organization NPA National Plan of Action OEMA Overseas Employment and Migration Act OKUP Obivashi Karmi Unnayan Program PROYAS Proyas Manobik Unnayan Society PSA Public Service Announcement PSHTA Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking Act of 2012 Q3 Quarter Three SDC Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SDG Sustainable Development Goals SMC School Management Committee TIE Theater in Education TIP Trafficking-in-Persons TOT Training of Trainers TTC Technical Training Center UNO Upazila Nirbahi Officer UP Union Parishad USAID United States Agency for International Development VAW Violence Against Women VGF Vulnerable Group Feeding VTF Vigilance Task Force Y4 Year Four YPSA Young Power in Social Action 4 BC/TIP Quarterly Performance Report: Q3, Year 4 BRIEF PROGRAM DESCRIPTION Trafficking-in-persons (TIP) is the fastest growing criminal activity worldwide and takes several forms: including exploitation of men, women and children into bonded or abusive labor or the commercial sex trade. TIP is one of the largest sources of illegal income globally1 and violates basic human rights, damages lives, feeds corruption, exerts an economic toll on governments and citizens, and harms society at all levels. Built on the foundation laid by the Actions for Combating Trafficking-in-Persons program (ACT, 2008- 2014), the six-year Bangladesh Counter Trafficking-in-Persons (BC/TIP) program, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Winrock International, aims to reduce the prevalence of human trafficking in Bangladesh through strengthened capacity of communities to identify and prevent TIP; improved access of trafficking victims to assistance; increased responsiveness of criminal justice actors to trafficking victims; and effective and coordinated partnerships among stakeholders to combat TIP. BC/TIP addresses trafficking in 20 trafficking-prone districts through robust interventions in all four of USAID’s areas of emphasis: Prevention, Protection, Prosecution, and Partnership. It connects local and national government representatives, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), citizens and community leaders to prevent TIP, protect survivors, prosecute the crimes of perpetrators, and engage at all levels of society as change agents in curbing the crime. BC/TIP’s partners are Bangladeshi NGOs with complementary skills and presence in the BC/TIP target areas, which ensures relevance, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness. BC/TIP works collaboratively to reduce the prevalence of TIP in Bangladesh by: • Strengthening the capacity of communities to identify trafficking victims and take action; • Improving trafficking victims’ access to assistance; • Increasing the responsiveness of criminal justice actors to trafficking victims; and • Facilitating effective and coordinated partnerships among stakeholders to combat trafficking. In March 2018, components on child marriage and knowledge and learning were added to BC/TIP’s scope of work and the project end date was extended by 13 months to November 30, 2020 under a project modification. BC/TIP will address the issue of child marriage in parallel with TIP interventions through prevention and protection activities, aiming to fill gaps in knowledge for child marriage. BC/TIP will also work with stakeholders to understand and identify drivers of violent extremism and introduce counter violent extremism (CVE) prevention and mitigation activities, via existing prevention mechanisms, within the targeted communities. The purpose of this report is to outline the project achievements and activities undertaken during Quarter Three (Q3) of Year Four (Y4) of the program (April – June 2018). The report includes discussion of the current political situation in Bangladesh and the challenges faced. 1 UNODC, https://www.unodc.org/wdr2017/field/Booklet_5_NEXUS.pdf 5 BC/TIP Quarterly Performance Report: Q3, Year 4 A: POLITICAL CONTEXT AND ENABLING ENVIRONMENT Throughout Q3, Y4 the first signs of political volatility that could possibly characterize upcoming quarters, as the Bangladesh general elections are scheduled, began to show: Students protested throughout Q3 against the government Civil-Service Quota System, calling for reforms to be made to the system, most vocal of which was the demand for the removal of the 30% quota for children and grandchildren of ‘1971 freedom fighters’. Peaceful protests were met by violent opposition from the ruling party Awami-League affiliated Chhatra League, its student wing, drawing condemnation from the US Embassy in Dhaka. Small demonstrations encouraged by the political opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), were staged in protest to the continued imprisonment, and refusal to grant bail, of the BNP leader Khaleda Zia, who has remained imprisoned since a guilty verdict was handed down against her in a graft case in February 2018. The government commenced an anti-narcotic drive against those purported to be involved in drug crime in May 2018. Between May and June, 21,883 alleged drug dealers and addicts were arrested. The heavy- handed security response by the Rapid Action Battalion and Police has resulted in more than 180 deaths, with claims from some quarters that these were politically motivated