UNB:The World Food Programme (WFP), the leading United Nations agency combating global hunger, and the Department of Women Affairs (DWA) of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Bangladesh on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), jointly committing to a more inclusive, nutrition-sensitive, and shock-responsive social protection programmes by 2026.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed at the DWA Headquarters in Dhaka by Farida Parveen, Director General of DWA and Dom Scalpelli, Resident Representative and Country Director of WFP.
The MoU on supporting the national institutions to strengthen their capacity to design and implement inclusive nutrition- and gender-sensitive and shock-responsive social protection programs by 2026 between World Food Programme (WFP) and the Department of Women Affairs (DWA) under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs of the Government of Bangladesh was signed at the DWA in Dhaka on October 26.Under this MoU, DWA and WFP will work together to review policy and programme designs, with a specific focus on reforming the Mother and Child Benefit Programme (MCBP) and Vulnerable Women Benefit Programme as directed in the National Social Security Strategy (NSSS) and Second Phase Action Plan (2021-2026).
The partnership will enhance the capacity of DWA officials at both national and sub-national levels to identify the right beneficiaries from the community, facilitate timely payment transfers and promote and capitalize on behaviour change learning outcomes.
The joint collaboration also aspires to improve the monitoring and reporting system of social protection programmes along with well-established grievance redress mechanisms to ensure the voices of communities are heard and addressed accordingly. Additionally, a technical advisory group will be formed for developing.