A welcome development, but more ground to cover

It is encouraging to see that women are increasingly occupying public administration roles in Bangladesh. As a report by this daily highlights, women deputy commissioners (DCs) are serving in 20 out of 64 districts, while women UNOs (upazila nirbahi officers) lead 191 of 499 upazilas. Last March, these participation numbers were 18 and 158, respectively. Among the eight divisions, Dhaka has the highest number of female DCs, where nine out of 13 districts are represented by women DCs. Women are also making strides in land management offices, as 116 of 478 assistant commissioners (land) are female. The most positive development is that this advancement is evident in urban as well as more rural and remote areas.

No doubt, the increased participation of women in higher levels of education over the past decades has contributed to these improvements. Within the country’s field administration, women are serving in 332 of 1,085 key positions, while 28 percent of additional divisional commissioners are female. Additionally, 15 women are reportedly serving as secretaries or holding secretary-equivalent status out of 88 secretary posts across various ministries and divisions. However, women’s representation is absent at the highest level of field administration, as there are currently no female officers serving as divisional commissioners.

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While it may be expected that a country where more than half the population consists of women will see the same proportion of female representation in its field administration posts, the social and cultural realities of the country have long been barriers in this regard. In the first six months of this year, for instance, the Human Rights Support Society (HRSS) tracked a 56-percent increase in cases of violence against women and girls compared to the same period last year. To note, these cases also accounted for the highest proportion of all human rights abuse cases recorded between January-June in both years.

Meanwhile, one of the key shortcomings identified by observers during the 13th parliamentary election, held on February 12, was the near-absence of women candidates. Only seven out of 85 women candidates were directly elected to parliament, and nearly a third of women candidates were relatives of influential men. While the path to a public service post is more direct and formalised, women’s entry into politics in Bangladesh is largely relational and informal. As seen during this year’s election, political parties are also uncooperative in terms of facilitating women’s participation, even when they are legally obligated to do so.

We commend women’s increasing representation in field administration posts, where officers are able to work directly with citizens and deliver essential public services. This trend must become the norm in coming years, and not be allowed to regress. Equally important is the task of authorities to collect feedback from women officers and identify room for improvement, which could encourage more women to enter these roles.