Leuza khan
LP4Y Bangladesh started in 2020 and we officially opened the center in 2021 nearby Bhashantek slum, the biggest slum in Dhaka city. We then started mobilization, pedagogy, and of course, partnership. Partnership in LP4Y is a very important part. In this partnership pillar, we are working on 4 topics : Integration, MEI, Exposure, Fundraising. We are supported by our partners with these pillars across the world. We have more than 500 partners working and supporting us.
What do we do with our partners, how do we work with them?
Firstly we establish a win-win relationship with transparent and effective communication, and we make a 6 month action plan with each partner.
Today we’ll present two very active partners, one is “ETAM”, a clothing company and “ZE PROJECT”, a gender equality initiative. They are working seamlessly and try to touch every partnership pillar.
Ze project is amazing! They support us by giving training both in the Training and Development Center and Green Village. The topics are mostly social awareness and gender diversity. They are working for the excluded transgender people from the community. They are trying to integrate them personally. There are many trans men and women who are supported by them educationally and professionally.
We have signed MOU (Memorandum of understanding) with them for a clear vision of collaboration. In this MOU we mentioned how we will work together on 3 company visits, 3 training sessions both in TDC & GV and 3 testimonies throughout the year.
Some words from Ze project
Gender diversity and inclusion are significant challenges in both urban and rural settings. We are experiencing a big gap between employers and employees. The company required skilled employees, but a large number of our beneficiaries transgender, and gender diverse communities—drop out of the primary schools.
Also, there is a level of stigma and discrimination fostering our community pushback against the job industry.
Employers are not ready to provide their jobs due to a lack of gender equality policies. We are very happy that LP4Y is trying to invite transgender individuals to get professional job training both in Rangpur division and central Dhaka. The ZE Project also provided resources for the workshop Understanding the Context of Bangladesh & Transgender, Hijra, and Diverse Gender Community. Our collaborative efforts mean that ZE Project and LP4Y are currently learning together and reaping the benefits of our partnership. On behalf of the ZE Project, we promised to provide continuous support and enhance our partnership for the economic development of diverse youth and adolescent girls, transgender individuals.
Manager: ZE Project
Etam is one leading clothing brand. They also have CSR policy. They are using organic material for making clothes or coloring them. They reuse clothes for making new clothes. They are reducing water to wash denim .They are making eco-friendly fabric which is really helpful for our environment. They are using thin plastic bottles to make stylish pants for women which were very surprising.
Some words from Etam
The Etam Group has committed to empowering women since 1916, and in our ongoing commitment, our Bangladesh office partnered with NGO LP4Y to give some local Bangladeshi women the chance to peek inside our world.
In January 2023, five young women from LP4Y spent an afternoon at the Bangladesh office in Dhaka, where we explained the office’s various functions, had a member of each department present their role, and offered mock interviews to train the young women understand the kinds of questions they might come across in an interview for a role in a sourcing office.
After this first office visit, we arranged a short-term internship with Jannatul, one of those young women. Her career project is to become a fashion designer and launch her own fashion label. She was particularly thrilled to join us, seeing this internship as an opportunity to develop her cross-functional knowledge across logistics, quality control, merchandising, etc. We are honored to have had the opportunity to partner with LP4Y, worked alongside Jannatul, and positively contributed to these young women's professional and personal development."
Cameron Garreau