Activating Village Court in Bangladesh
Activating Village Courts in Bangladesh Phase II (AVCB II) Project facilitates local authorities in making village courts functional at 1,080 unions with financial supports and a tri-partnership with European Union (EU), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Bangladesh. The Local Government Division (LGD) of the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives (MoLGRD&C) is implementing this project for creating wider access to dispute resolutions services for the rural people particularly poor and vulnerable at the community level. Madaipur Legal Aid Association is working as a partner NGO to implement the field awareness activity in the working area.
Objectives: The overarching objective of the AVCB II project is to contribute to improve the access to justice for disadvantaged and marginalized groups in Bangladesh.
Specific Objectives: The specific objectives of the project are:
- To make local authorities more responsive to local justice needs and offer appropriate legal services in the form of well-functioning village courts
- To empower local people, especially women, the poor and vulnerable groups to seek remedies for injustices and to resolve their disputes at the local level in an expeditious, transparent and affordable manner.
The key expected outputs of the project are:
- Capacity of relevant stakeholders at national and local level strengthened to enable VCs in at least 1080 Unions to function effectively by March 2019.
- Legal and policy framework reviewed and revised to enhance efficiency and effectiveness of VCs.
- GoB monitoring capacity for evaluating VCs performance is strengthened and systematized.
- Beneficiaries in project areas understand the roles and functions of the VCs and are able to access their services when required.
- Evidence-base and knowledge-management on VCs increased.
Project Duration: December 2016 to August 2019
Project Area (in brief): Districts: 7, Upazillas: 28 and Unions: 235
The target groups/beneficiaries:
Primary: Disadvantaged people especially women
Secondary: Women leaders, Village elites, UP Chairman, Secretary, Female & Male Members of UP, community leaders, Village Police (Choukider & Dafader), Youth group of the community, GOB Official, Judges, Lawyers, Journalist, officials of LGD, Project staff and mass peoples.
Project Budget: 238,969,424.00 for 33 months
Existing Staffs:
Total Staffs : 280 Persons: Male 137 (49%) & Female 143 (51%)
UP level Staffs : 235 Persons
Districts & Upazilla Level staffs : 42 Persons
Central Level : 03 Persons
Finance & Technical assistance by:
European Union, UNDP-Bangladesh & GOB
Implemented by : LGD, MoLGRD&C, GOB
Partner NGO : Madaripur Legal Aid Association
