Association for Community Development (ACD) is a woman headed organization and established in 1989 by a group of social activists in view of community development with a philosophy of mainstreaming gender equality, social justice and good governance.

1. Goal:

To achieve the rights of people, especially the disadvantaged and vulnerable women, adolescent and children at grassroots levels through improving their socio-economic, political and cultural status, ensuring social justice and good governance.

2. Thematic Areas:

ACD has clustered its activities into three sectors and designs its programs:
(a) Human Rights Sector
 Gender and Social Justice
 Women’s Empowerment and Leadership Development
 Combat Human Trafficking and Care and Support for the Survivors
 Civic and Human Rights Advocacy and Education
(b) Child Rights Sector
 Prevention and Protection of Children, Victim of Violence and at Risk Situation
 Institutional Care and Support for the Child Victims of Violence
 Empowerment and Participation of Children and Adolescents
(c) Sustainable Development Sector
 Developed and Functioning of Community based Organizations
 Institutional Management and Capacity Building
 Economic Empowerment of Rural Women

3. Type and Registration Details

Type: Non-Government Organization
Registration:
a) NGO Affairs Bureau; 02.12.1990
b) Department of Social Services; 26.12.1989
c) Societies Act 1860; 04.12.2003

4. Program Support Units:

ACD has developed the following separate units to facilitate its programs for sustainable benefits in programming:
a. Human Resource Unit
b. Training Unit
c. Cultural Unit
d. Advocacy, Lobbying & Networking Unit
e. Fact Finding Unit
f. Monitoring Unit
g. Child Protection Unit
h. Research, Documentation & Publication Unit

5. Organizational Policies and Guidelines:

Human Resource Policy, Child Protection Policy, Financial Manual, Data Protection Policy, Procurement/ Purchase and Disposal Policy, Code of Conduct for Staffs, Cost Sharing Policy, Policy Against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, Gender Policy, Anti Fraud Policy, Conflict of Interest Policy, Internal Audit Manual, Strategic Plan (2016-2020), Minimum Care and Standards of Shelter Home, Constitution, and Minimum care and standard for Socialization Center.

6. Training Manuals:

ACD’s in-house trainers have issued based backgrounds and have skills and experience in conducting participatory training sessions. ACD also works as resource persons to facilitate programs organized by other organizations in the development sector. The training courses offered by ACD are: 1) Peer techniques, 2) Communication and Facilitation Skills, 3) Family Law, Violence Against Women, CRC and Inheritance, 4) Gender and Masculinity, 5) Human Rights, 6) Leadership and Management, 7) Law and Advocacy, 8) Salish (local level mediation), 9) Women’s Rights, 10) Training of Trainers, 11) Caregivers, 12) Psychosocial Counseling, 13) Trafficking, 14) Sexual Reproductive health and rights, 15) Child Protection, 16) Life Skills Training, 17) Pre-decision orientation on safe migration, 18) Pre departure training on safe migration, 19) Entrepreneurship Training, 20) Stay safe from online sexual exploitation, 21) Toolkit on Child Safe Organization, 22) Preventing Violent Extremism, etc.

7. Network and Alliances

ACD is involved with various networks and alliances and organize different activities to undertake policy advocacy initiatives. It uses micro level experiences for macro level policy reform advocacy.

A. Linkages with Government: ACD is member of
1) District Acid Control Committee
2) Counter Trafficking Committee (district and sub-district level)
3) District Legal Aid Committee
4) Tobacco Control Task force Committee (district and sub-district level)
5) District Information Communication Technology Committee
6) District Shishu Bikash Kendra
7) Divisional Child Labor Welfare Committee
8) Standing Committee on Violence against Women and Children
9) District Advisory Committee of Right to Information Act
10) District Disaster Committee
11) District Child Welfare Board
12) Nari Nirjaton Nirodh Committee (Violence against Women Prevention Committee)
13) District Thematic Committee on child marriage
14) National Tobacco Control Cell
15) Nagorik (citizen) Committee of Rajshahi City Corporation
16) GO (government organization)-NGO Coordination Committee on Combating Women and Child Trafficking; Task Force Committee on Protection of Trafficking of Women and Children governed by Ministry of Home Affairs.
17) One Stop Crisis Centre (OCC)
18) Victim Support Centre

B. National links and network: ACD is member of Action against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children (ATSEC), Disadvantaged Adolescents Working NGOs Forum, Election Working Group, Campaign for Popular Education, Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum, Child Rights Governance Assembly, Tamak Birodhi Nari Jote, Shamajik Protirodh Committee,Engage Men & Boys Network for Promoting Gender Justice Alliance, National Action and Coordinating Group against Violence against Children (NACG), National Alliance for Migrants’ Rights, Bangladesh Women’s Humanitarian Platform, Coalition to Ban Physical Humiliating Punishment (PHP) in all Settings, Coordinating Council for Human Rights in Bangladesh, Peace/Countering Violent Extremism Network, and Bangladesh UN Migration Network.

C. International links and network: ACD is member of Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), ECPAT International,
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW), Trust Law, International POPs Elimination Network,
Global Network of Civil Society Organisations for Disaster Reduction (GNDR), Ending violence against children, Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint, Family for Every Child, Consortium for Street Children, and Avoidable Deaths Network.

8. Award Achievement

a) Ashoka Fellowship: Mrs Salima Sarwar, ACD’s Executive Director received Ashoka Fellowship in 1992 on Economic Development (Sectors: Income Generation, Natural Resource Management; Target Population: Communities, Women).

b) Anti-Slavery International Award: ACD received Anti-Slavery International Award 2001 for its outstanding work against trafficking in Bangladesh.

c) UN-HABITAT Regional Office for Asia and Pacific award on ‘Gender and Rights-Responsive Sustainable Cities in Asia and the Pacific’ 2007; Mrs Salima Sarwar, Executive Director got ‘Individual Leadership Award for Innovation’ and ACD got ‘Civil Society Award for Innovation’.

9. Projects on SRHR:

ACD has implemented several projects addressing SRHR such as

a) Link Up: Better Sexual and Reproductive Health & Rights (SRHR) for Young People Affected by HIV in Bangladesh (Intervention for Hotel, Street & Residence based Female Sex Worker)

b) Link Up: Better Sexual and Reproductive Health & Rights (SRHR) for Young People Affected by HIV in Bangladesh (Intervention for station boys/girls specially pavement dwellers)

c) Community Action for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Policies in Asia

d) Prevention of HIV/AIDS among Young People in Bangladesh-HAPPY

e) Prevention and control of HIV/AIDS among high risk populations and vulnerable young people in Bangladesh

1. Prevention of child trafficking and sexual exploitation of children
An evaluation of ACD’s action

2. Women in rural community of bangladesh: A study of five villages in Rajshahi district

3. Gender parity in education: a perspective of girls education in Bangladesh

4. Adolescent prostitute: Commercial sexual exploitation of children

5. Working women in Chatal of husking mill in Bangladesh- A study on mohadebpur union of mohadebpur upazila