About us
VISION
That within Bangladesh all children with disabilities and disadvantaged can be self-reliant, independent and integrated into society with honor and dignity for a better life
MISSION
To work for the early recognition, education, rehabilitation, health, nutrition and protection of disadvantaged children and children with disabilities through training them in independent skills by developing, providing, organizing and setting up relevant institutions and services in the educational, health, and social sectors of society within an inclusive environment.
OBJECTIVES
That children with disabilities and the disadvantaged are included in mainstream society with equal rights, opportunities and dignity, within a protective environment, through the development of infrastructures to achieve this objective.
beneficiaries and partners
beneficiaries
partners
Dr. Shamim Ferdous
Executive Director
Dr. Shamim Ferdous has been working with Bangladesh Protibondhi Foundation (BPF), a non- Govt., non –political organization since 1987 as its Executive Director. BPF works in the field of disadvantaged children and children with disabilities. She is the Director (South Asia) of Workability Asia. Read More
Dr. Shamim has conducted many researches on related topics. She attended twenty four International Conferences and several National Conferences. Under her supervision Save the Children has been running two projects which are; Holistic Approach towards Promotion of Inclusive Education(HOPE) and Inclusive Care and Protection.
More than fifteen Articles have been published in International Journals. She also runs the program of Economic Empowerment.
She is also a member of Workability Asia, Workability International, Asia Oceania Neurology, South Asia Violence against Children, Bangladesh Society for Child Neurology, Development and Disability (BSCNDD), Bangladesh Pediatric Association and Asian Federation of Intellectually Disabled.
Zebunnessa Rahman
Chairperson
Profile:
*B A (Hons), M.A. (English Literature), Dacca University, 1965.
*LLB ( Central Law College); *SCBA membership: 21st August 1972.
*Founder and E C member of Bangladesh Mohila Samity (BMS) since 1972.
*Being one of the pioneers of ‘women in legal profession’ was selected by US Dept. of State’s premier
professional exchange program for a month-long study tour under International Visitor Leadership
Program (IVLP) in 1976.
*Founder Member, Vice President and later Advisor of
Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association (BNWLA) founded in 1979.
*Founder Secretary, Past President of Soroptimist International Club of Dhaka chartered in 1982. Read More
From childhood, I watched with awe my mother and aunts’ (when occasions arose) involvement in community relief work amongst the less privileged women and children living around us. My goal since then was to be a good volunteer and use my education and knowledge to help bring a quality change in the lives of those less advantaged — socially, mentally or physically. Foundations, organizations, associations are good platforms to learn, share and serve large groups of people with varied basic survival issues in a more focussed manner. This is the way I had been involved with above few organizations in addition to my flexible professional work with my husband in his law firm.
THE FOUNDERS
Late PROFESSOR EMERITUS SULTANA SARWATARA ZAMAN
Founder and Past Chairperson of BPF.
Professor, Department of Psychology, Dhaka University; Founder Chairman, Department of Special Education, Institute of Education & Research (IER), Dhaka University; Founder and General Secretaryof the Bangladesh Protibondhi Foundation (BPF).
LATE BEGUM SUFIA KAMAL
Founder Chairperson of BPF
Renowned Poet Begum Sufia Kamal dedicated her life for the rights of the distressed and fought for women’s empowerment and cultural development. She had great love for children particularly the disadvantaged, the helpless, and those who are neglected in society. She was the Chairperson of Bangladesh Protibondhi Foundation from its inception till her demise in 1999. With her pleasant personality and motherly affection, she inspired, guided and participated in all activities of the BPF.
ORIGINAL SETTLERS
The 1st meeting of the board of trustees, held at 5 pm on Sunday, 13th May, 1984 at residence of Professor Sultana Zaman and her spouse late Lt. Col. Retd. Quazi Nooruzzaman (Bir Uttam) in Amynabad Colony, Siddeswari, Dhaka. Through this meeting all attendees became the BPFs Original Settlers and the first Board of Trustees:
Begum Sufia Kamal (late)
Chairperson
Professor Emeritus Sultana S. Zaman (late)
Founder, BPF
Professor Naushaba Khatoon
Member
Mr. Nuruddin Taufique-Ul-Islam (late)
Member
Mr. Imtyiaz Hussain (late)
Member
Mr. ASM Shahidullah Khan
Member
background
In May 1984 Professor Emeritus Dr. Sultana Sarwatara Zaman established a professional organization which strongly supported Inclusion to provide educational, health and rehabilitation services for disadvantaged children with and without disabilities, called the ”Bangladesh Protibondhi Foundation” (BPF). BPF is a non-profit, non-government, philanthropic organization which started work with trained multidisciplinary professionals from the education, health and social sectors.
Prior to the establishment of the BPF, in the mid- 1970s Prof. Zaman had established the Society for the Care and Education of the Mentally Retarded , Bangladesh (SCEMRB), today known as the “Society for the Welfare of the Intellectually Disabled” (SWID) Bangladesh.
For over a decade the founding Board of Trustees, with Professor Sultana Zaman as the General Secretary, and the late poet and social activist Begum Sufia Kamal as the Chairperson, were able to raise the concerns of parents, communities, policy makers, educationists, and health and rehabilitation specialists at the national level to develop services for CWDs and provide support to their families.