Speech by Mrs. Agnes van Ardenne, Netherlands Minister for Development Cooperation, at BRAC signing ceremony, Dhaka, 16 February 2006

Mr Abed, founder and chairman of BRAC, members of the BRAC management and other representatives of BRAC, members of the press, ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to be here at BRAC today. The Netherlands and BRAC have had an excellent working relationship for many years and we are very proud of our long-term friendship. I greatly admire BRAC for the difference it makes to the lives of the poor in Bangladesh, under the inspiring leadership of Mr Abed and with his professional and dedicated staff.

BRAC’s programmes for poverty alleviation and empowerment of the poor have made the organisation a success story in terms of sustainable human development. BRAC is an essential contributor to Bangladesh’s efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals. For example, BRAC’s contribution to the Education for All goals and the education MDGs is crucial for Bangladesh. The BRAC Education Programme is one of the best non-formal education programmes in the world. It has already provided more than three million children with high-quality, child-friendly education and prepared them for a better future.

Education is also one of my priority areas. As of next year, I will spend 15% of my total development budget on basic education. The focus will be on improving the quality and relevance of basic education, providing equal opportunities for all children, and eliminating gender disparity. Special attention will be given to non-formal education, and to alternative forms of education for marginal groups. I am happy to note that we share these priorities with BRAC.

The success of the BRAC Education Programme and my wish to increase our support for high-quality basic education made me decide to increase our contribution to the programme by 14.3 million euros for the coming three and a half years. With these additional funds, BRAC can expand the programme and increase its special focus on children with disabilities and children from ethnic communities. This is an important and welcome expansion of the programme, and I consider it an honour and a privilege to have signed the contract with Mr Abed today.

Education is one crucial area. Water is another. In Bangladesh you don’t have to look very far to see water. Water is everywhere. Yet good-quality drinking water is not available to all. And floods have caused devastation and suffering.

The Netherlands and Bangladesh have been longstanding partners in the area of water. To date, programmes have focused mainly on water management. The Netherlands and BRAC have also been partners in this area, as we saw yesterday during a field visit to the coastal chars. Under the stewardship of BRAC, local NGOs are doing excellent work in helping the destitute settlers of the chars to improve their livelihoods.

Last year I made a pledge to contribute to attainment of the Millennium Development Goals by providing clean drinking water and sanitation services to 50 million people worldwide by 2015. The fact that BRAC was also committed to this objective was an excellent opportunity for cooperation. I am happy to announce that an ambitious new programme on water supply, sanitation and hygiene is in the final stages of preparation. The programme, to be known by its acronym WASH, is worth over 50 million euros. It will go a long way towards reaching the target I just mentioned.

WASH will provide 17.6 million people with access to effective sanitation services while teaching them about good hygiene practices. In addition to this, more than 8.5 million people will be given access to safe drinking water. The programme will ensure that existing water supplies are maintained and managed by the community. And it will benefit women in particular.

One facet of this programme that merits special attention is the role of the private sector. I firmly believe that the private sector has an essential contribution to make in the development process. Not only is this the right thing to do, it also makes good business sense. For instance, the WASH programme allows soap manufacturers to distribute and market their products. I’m pleased to see that old ideological feuds are being replaced by innovative partnerships.

In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to reaffirm our deep commitment to working with the people of Bangladesh. I am glad that my government and BRAC are continuing to find ways to give substance to this commitment.

Thank you.