Achievements and Performance: A Year in Review for UKBET
At UKBET, our mission is to address the pressing issue of child domestic labour in Bangladesh. Over a million girls in Bangladesh are forced into domestic labour due to family poverty. Separated from their parents, these young girls cook, clean, and care for others around the clock, hidden from view and often subject to abuse. Deprived of their family’s support, their childhood, and any form of education, these girls are trapped in a cycle of exploitation despite child labour being illegal and global efforts to eradicate it.
Doorstep Learning Programme
Five years ago, UKBET launched the Doorstep Learning Programme to combat child domestic labour. By 2023, this programme became our primary focus, bringing literacy, numeracy, and life skills to 424 girls enslaved in domestic work. Small grants were also provided to parents capable of starting small businesses, helping to end their financial dependency on their children.
These children formed trusting relationships with their community teachers and made significant progress in basic skills. They became more confident, better able to defend themselves, healthier through improved diet and hygiene, and registered citizens. Importantly, none of these girls will become child brides.
Quantifiable Impact of Doorstep Learning Programme in 2023:
- 424 children participated, including 346 working children and 78 former working children
- 182 children progressed out of child labour
- 74 children enrolled in school
- 66 children enrolled in vocational training
- 28 children left domestic labour and returned to their villages, with 13 leaving child labour entirely and 15 becoming part-time workers to continue their education
- 14 children found safe, age-appropriate employment
- 40 girls received self-defence training
- 70 families received micro-grants to start or expand their small businesses
- 44 siblings enrolled in mainstream schools instead of following their sisters into work
- 23 siblings pursued vocational training
- 13 family members of working children found improved employment opportunities
- 5 family members received medical treatment
- Community teachers regularly visited families to provide assistance or referrals to other agencies
- 22 neighbourhood awareness programmes changed attitudes towards child labour, child marriage, and the importance of education
Fresh Start and Time Out Learning Programmes
Initiated in 2013, these programmes aimed to help boys working in hazardous occupations. Despite their popularity, the number of boys progressing out of child labour was disappointing. Given limited resources, the Trustees have decided to close these programmes in February 2024.
Impact of Fresh Start and Time Out Learning Programmes:
- 206 boys participated across three centres
- 36 children, including siblings, enrolled in school
- 11 children, including siblings, enrolled in vocational training
- 21 children, including siblings, progressed into safe work or vocational training
- 20 families were supported with micro-grants
Plans for 2024
In 2024, we aim to expand our successful Doorstep Learning Programme. Our one-to-one and small group teaching, combined with micro-grants and family support, has proven effective in lifting families out of extreme poverty and children out of domestic labour. We plan to partner with another NGO to replicate this model in Dhaka, with ambitions to involve more NGOs and expand beyond Dhaka.
For 30 years, our trustees and generous donors have sustained UKBET. Now, we aim to demonstrate, disseminate, and deliver long-term results. With a successful programme model to share, we are open, ambitious, and intent on our mission to eradicate child domestic labour in Bangladesh.
If you have any questions please do email us at info@ukbet-bd.org. If you would like to support our work then please do consider donating or sharing our project news with your friends and family.